


Impasse

by KereinaKyuseika



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Aged-Up Gon Freecs/Killua Zoldyck, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Ancient Greek Religion & Lore Fusion, Angst, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Clubbing, Dancing, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Goddesses, Hisoka's Bungee Gum Nen Ability (Hunter X Hunter), M/M, Mild Smut, Nen (Hunter X Hunter), Other, Post-Canon, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Spirit Guides, Spirit World, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:28:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 40,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25327765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KereinaKyuseika/pseuds/KereinaKyuseika
Summary: 2 and a half years after the Chimera Ants/Election Arc, Gon and Killua (now 17) decide to take a vacation to visit Zushi at Heaven's Arena. There they meet a mysterious woman who says she is friends with Hisoka. What plan could she have up her sleeve?AU that explores what happens when a Greek Goddess decides to come to the realm of mortals/hunters and ends up on a mission with Gon, Killua, and Hisoka.Since Togashi won't finish the story I'm taking matters into my own hands to explore what Gon will do/become after the events of the CA/CE arc.
Relationships: Hisoka (Hunter x Hunter)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 32





	1. Appearances

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there! This is my first time ever attempting to write a fanfic, but I’ve had an idea for a femme fatale character that I can’t get out of my head so I am bringing her to life. I love a lot of the characters in HxH, but one thing I can’t stand is how few strong women characters there are in the series so i figured if I wanted it, I would have to write it. I will add more tags as I flush out the chapters. I welcome any critiques or suggestions and hope you enjoy the story! ⭐-_-💧

Gon and Killua stepped off the airship onto the cool tarmac and both were instantly flooded with overwhelming nostalgic memories.

It was a little after noon, and they had just arrived in the city where Heaven’s Arena stood. As they walked into the airport, they were both reminiscing on the last time they had arrived at the Arena together; How that had been the start of their epic journey that led to their deep bond and fated friendship. Gon’s heart swelled, thinking of how important Killua had become to him since they were last here, and he glanced at his best friend.

Killua caught Gon’s shining eyes, and he blushed and quickly looked away. “Baka, doesn’t it embarrass you to look at me like that?” His tone betrayed his words, as the nervousness of it showed he had clearly been thinking of the same thing.

Gon let a huge grin onto his face “No it doesn’t bother me, I’m so happy to be back here with you! We are going to have so much fun. I can’t wait to see Zushi either!” 

Killua’s nerves faded away, and he smiled. “Yea, you’re right. I guess we should call him and let him know we just got here.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Zushi’s number. 

It rang a few times, and then finally “Killua?” 

Killua was surprised by how different the boy sounded, much more like a young man than the child they had met all those years ago. “Hey, Zushi. Gon and I are taking a vacation together and we are here in the city. Sorry for the sudden visit, but are you free today?” Killua’s cool tone gave no hints as to how excited both of them were to be here, but he was hoping the boy was free or else he would not know how to handle Gon’s disappointment. 

“Are you kidding? Of course I want to see you guys while you're here! I'm teaching shingen-ryu classes this afternoon and my last class ends at 5 p.m, how about you guys come to arena after that and we can all meet there?"

“Okay, sounds like a plan. What room are you in?” Killua looked at Gon and gave a thumbs up, then rolled his eyes. Gon’s smile looked like it was going to split his overly eager face in half. 

“I’m in room 2240, but we can meet in the lobby. I don’t think you two will be able to get to the 200th floor since you aren’t fighters.”

Killua smiled wickedly as he responded “Don’t worry, we'll be there. We are Hunters after all” and with that, he hung up the phone. 

“Gon, we are meeting Zushi at his room at 5 pm so lets grab some lunch in the meantime”.

Gon cheerfully agreed, “Okay! Let’s go to that little restaurant we always used to go to!”

\---

After lunch, they spent their time shopping and exploring the city. In late February, the normally bustling tourist destination was transformed into a calm city, with its natives the only other people traversing the semi-empty streets. 

Gon and Killua fell into a comfortable rhythm together, moving from store to store with no particular destination in mind. Killua eventually found a candy store, and earned an uneasy look from Gon as he purchased what any normal person would consider an obscene amount of Choco Robots. Killua had the employee ship the box to Zushi’s room at the arena, since they had yet to decide where they would be staying. 

“We should probably find a hotel so we can drop our bags off.” Killua told Gon as they left the candy store. They didn’t have much luggage, only a backpack each, but it was still probably a good idea to prepare a place to stay before it got any later. They strolled side by side on the sidewalk, one of only a few groups of people out in the mid afternoon streets. 

“Hmmm, where do you think we should stay, Killua? Should we look for somewhere close to the stadium?” Gon wondered aloud, closing his eyes and putting his hands behind his head as he thought about potential options. “I wonder if Wing-san is still living nea-”

Gon abruptly bumped into Killua’s back, not having noticed that the other boy had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Killua was holding his phone, attempting to type something in, when the sudden contact caused his thumb to jerk forward and clumsily pad over the wrong keys. 

“Baka, watch where you’re going. Yes I think we should stay near the arena, I’m searching for a hotel now.” Killua gave Gon an annoyed look meant to match his exasperated tone, but Gon knew his friend wasn’t really mad. 

“Ah, gomen Killua!” He stuck his tongue out and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. 

“Man, you’re hopeless.” Killua rolled his eyes as he continued to type and smiled to himself. _Some things never change_ , he thought. 

He appeared to find what he was looking for on his phone, and he looked back at Gon. “There are several hotels near the arena, but one says it has special accommodations for Hunters. When you stay there, your name remains off the books and there are a lot of security measures in place to keep the guests safe. I think that would be the best place.” 

“Okay, that sounds good! Let’s get a room there then” Gon tried to sound cheerful, but Killua noticed his smile didn’t reach as far as it normally did. His eyes softened at his friend who started walking ahead, leaving Killua standing alone on the sidewalk for a moment. 

Gon was still sensitive about having lost his nen, which in his mind essentially meant becoming powerless. The only thing keeping him treading barely above the murky depths of despair was his desire to not make his friends worry; But the dread of his own pessimistic thoughts of his weakness were always looming deep below, threatening to drag him under and drown him at any second. 

“Killua, are you coming?” Gon called back finally noticing he was alone, and Killua jogged forward, renewed determination to make their stay as much fun as possible. 

“Hey Gon, we should stop at a clothing store and get you new clothes! This hotel is really nice, and I don’t think your classic green shorts are going to cut it.” His tone was slightly teasing, knowing Gon would take the bait.

Gon’s cheeks puffed, “What’s wrong with my shorts?” he huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Killua laughed, “Come on, we should both get new outfits to celebrate being here!” He grabbed Gon’s hand, and they started running down the street towards the mall. Gon smiled at his friend, his real smile returning and lighting up his face.

_I know what you’re doing Killua… you don’t need to, but thank you._

\---

A few hours later they were entering the lobby of the hotel, each sporting a new outfit. 

Gon’s new look (picked out by Killua, much to Gon’s reluctance) was made up of classic khaki pants and a white short-sleeve cotton t-shirt with a loose rounded neckline. His outfit was completed with a forest green hunter-style jacket with flat tan fur around the collar and lapels, matching the same fur at the ends of the sleeves. Gon had also traded his signature tall green boots for a shorter pair of rich, dark brown ankle boots that fit the overall outfit style better.

The new ensemble made Gon look more mature, and this was further aided by how Gon had been styling his hair recently. Instead of spiking it up, he now wore it down and relaxed, a few loose strands falling over his forehead. Mito-san had insisted he try new things, and his hair style had been one of the only things he was willing to experiment with.

Killua had picked out his own outfit himself, donning a long sleeve black turtle-neck with a thick white stripe going down the front. The black joggers he wore were a perfect match, with a white stripe going down the outer side of each of his legs. He had layered on top a periwinkle purple short sleeve loose zip-up jacket that had a few rock band logos patched on the front of his chest. He had also gotten new shoes, trading his usual dark purple sneakers for a crisp white pair that faintly squeaked on the luxurious marble flooring. The only thing that would have completed his aesthetic was his favorite skateboard, which he had left at home. 

Killua pointed to a sitting area in the middle of the lobby, and they walked towards one of the couches.

“You wait here with our stuff and I’ll get us a room.” Killua sat his bag down and started walking over to the main desk. 

Gon nodded and sunk heavily onto the couch, thankful Killua would be handling the process. There were always so many steps for checking in at a hotel, and Gon already felt out of his element in this bizarre, fancy building.

The hotel wasn’t what he had been expecting. He had been expecting something grand and opulent from the ornate architecture that had taken his breath away as they were entering the hotel, but the lobby looked like it belonged to a totally different building. The room was much smaller than Gon had expected, and it had sparse furniture, the sitting area he was occupying the only pieces in the room. The staff was sparse too; Two receptionists sat at the front desk with Killua, and a couple of guards were posted by the entrance and another one by a single elevator. They were guarding the only exits from the room, Gon realized. There was only one other door, which was directly behind the front desk. Gon noticed it was a thick steel door and had several keypads bolted to the wall next to it.

_Ah, Killua had said this place had intensely strict security. Somehow that makes me feel less safe than if we had stayed at a normal hotel._ He inhaled, taking note of the strange lack of smell, as if the room was heavily filtered to remove any lingering scents from the small space. The room felt intentionally sterile, as if any human presence that dared to enter was immediately washed away. While he was used to not interacting with large crowds, he had secretly hoped they would stay somewhere with at least a few friendly faces that would make his stay a welcome reprieve from the loneliness of Whale Island. 

Gon had spent most of the two years since parting with Killua on Whale Island, Mito-San forcing him to work hard at his studies and complete schooling before going out and doing anything reckless. Gon had been hesitant to agree, but the truth was he didn’t have any other plans or even an idea of where to start, the overwhelming feeling of loss keeping him from being able to think ahead to the future. At first, he had been able to keep those thoughts at bay, but as the days became more and more repetitive and his loneliness grew from being separated from his friends, he began to feel bored more often; and those moments were the hardest to keep the dark thoughts of worthlessness out of his mind.

Mito-san had eventually insisted that Gon visit a therapist to help him work through his loss, and Gon agreed he couldn’t go on as he was. So twice a month, he would leave the island and go to the nearby city of Dolle Port to meet with a therapist. It was during these trips that Gon seemed to mature the most, finally forced to face his own thoughts and acknowledge his failures and shortcomings. He had begun to accept what had happened, vowing he would enjoy the life that Killua had risked his younger sister’s life to give him back.

“Gon, let’s go!” The sudden noise pulled Gon out of his thoughts, and he looked up. Killua was walking back over towards him, sticking some folded papers in his jacket pocket and effortlessly swinging a room key on a ring around his finger. “Let’s drop our stuff off and then it will be time to visit Zushi.” 

Gon stood and grabbed their bags, handing Killua his. “Alright, let’s go!” He declared, renewed determination to enjoy his time with Killua in the present as much as possible. 

  
  


\---

Finally, they arrived at the arena. 

The tall white building loomed intensely over them, a giant standing monument to the trials and tribulations they had faced within the stadium’s walls. Being inside the building filled them with renewed energy, their exhaustion from the 12 hour flight and long afternoon rolling off of them, replaced by the exhilaration of what was to come.

“Alright, so now we just need to get to the 200th floor” Killua declared, and Gon’s eyes lit up with the challenge, his fist clenching in excitement. This would be the first test for him to see if he still had the skills essential to any Pro-Hunter. Killua gave a sly smile as he looked at the familiar spark of determination in Gon’s eyes.

“Gon, I’ll let you decide how we do it, just don’t try anything stupid.” Killua could easily get them to the 200th floor with no problems, but he knew Gon wanted to prove to himself he could accomplish even this small task.

Gon glanced around the lobby though he didn’t need to. He remembered the familiar layout: Where the registration desk was, where the various arenas were, and where the elevators that they had used when they were fighters were. Those elevators usually had an attendant in them though, so they wouldn’t be an option right now. Gon thought for a second. _There has to be a way they transport food and equipment up to the top floors that aren’t used by the audience or the fighters._ They continued walking casually through the lobby, away from the registration desk and the attached arena. 

They entered a different hall that was lined on each side with concession booths where spectators could buy food, drinks, merchandise and more. Normally it would have been filled with an ocean of hundreds of people, ebbing and flowing as they poured in and out of the various fighting events the arena offered. This evening though, with no major fights scheduled, there was only a small crowd of about 75 people that were probably here to support fighters just entering on the first floor. Gon smiled to himself. _Well, it wouldn’t be as fun if it was too easy._

They continued down the huge hall, doing their best to blend into the small crowd of people. They walked past some potted plants, and Gon swiped a pebble that was sitting above the dirt so fast even Killua barely noticed. He held the pebble in his fist as they continued to walk, and then just as swiftly launched it behind him with deadly accuracy at a sign above one of the booths. 

The sign was split in half and sent crashing to the floor. The sudden noise drew the attention of everyone, spectators scrambling to get away before something else seemingly exploded, employees frantically rushing over to investigate what had happened. The diversion allowed them to slip unnoticed behind a door marked **‘Staff Only.’**

Now they were at the entrance of a narrow hallway. There were several rooms lining the walls on each side, some of which looked like conference rooms and others that looked like offices. They were all deserted now since it was nearly 5 pm, so they continued on without stopping. The hall ended at an elevator, and Killua noticed a camera pointed at the elevator doors, meant to track anyone who got on or off. He easily sent a small bolt of electricity towards the camera, effectively frying it. 

“Hey! I thought you were going to let me do this?” Gon whined.

“I said I would let you decide _how_ we do it, not that I wouldn’t help,” Killua said matter-of-factly, and flashed his favorite mischievous cat smile.

Gon stuck his tongue out at his friend, and pushed the ‘Up’ arrow button. The doors opened almost immediately and they stepped in. Killua pushed the button for the 200th floor, and the elevator began its ascent. 

They both wore smug smiles on their faces as they arrived on the floor, and began walking down the hallway. Killua had concealed his presence with Zetsu as soon as they had arrived in the building, but now he was more tense as they walked the empty hall of the 200th floor. Killua remembered meeting Hisoka here in the past and experiencing the frigid malice of his aura for the first time. Killua hoped they would not run into the magician, as he was one of the only people who could (and probably would) give them any trouble. Killua had vowed to keep Gon safe on this trip, especially on this floor since his friend was totally defenseless to any nen attack. They arrived at a crossroad of the halls, and Gon pointed left, mirroring the sign on the wall that indicated this was the way to Zushi’s room.

They turned the corner and had only taken a few steps when Killua’s arm suddenly shot out in front of Gon, effectively stopping him in his tracks. _What is this aura?!_ He felt a cold sweat on his forehead as he felt the intense aura from a distance. If it was this strong from over here, he didn’t want to know how bad it would be up close. _Dammit, is Hisoka really here?!_ Killua could not imagine who else would be the owner of such a malicious aura. 

“Killua, it’s okay. I feel it too.” Gon quietly responded. 

_Of course, just because he can’t feel or see his own nen doesn’t mean he can’t feel the aura of others._ Killua slowly lowered his arm at the thought.

“Okay, let’s continue, but seriously don’t do anything stupid.” The white haired teen shot a look that told his friend he was not messing around.

“Don’t worry, I won’t. I don’t want to cause trouble for you.” Gon cooly responded and they continued walking down the hall. 

Killua extended his hand and rested it on Gon’s shoulder, giving up on using zetsu and shrouding his friend in an extension of his _ren. This will at least keep him safe from this intense aura, and act as a shield if they try a surprise attack,_ he assured himself. As they continued, slowly a figure came into view and Killua was filled with disbelief. 

_Surely this insane aura isn’t coming from her?!_

Further down the hall was a woman standing facing away from them. She looked tall for a woman, though her high heels accounted for several inches of her height. She was dressed in high-waisted black pants that hugged her hour-glass figure. Her top was a dark emerald colored silk blouse with a high collar that was fashioned shut with a clasp at the back of her neck. The top had no material covering her back save for two narrow strips of silky fabric that were tied behind her in a thick bow. The long sleeves of her shirt were fitted on her upper arms but puffed out around her forearms and the only thing keeping them from swallowing her elegantly manicured hands was the cinching of the fabric around her narrow wrists. Her long chocolatey brown hair fell in thick, delicious waves down her back. 

Feeling the boys approaching, her neck turned so she was glancing over her shoulder making both boys freeze in their place as their gazes met. She slowly began to turn around to face them, and they were struck by her beauty. 

Her almond shaped eyes were sharpened by dark winged eyeliner that gave them a cat-like appearance and contrasted their bright hazel color that was speckled with shining gold and cerulean blue. Thick, long eyelashes curled upwards towards artfully sculpted eyebrows. Her dainty nose sat perched above her full lips, her bottom lip slightly pouting out beneath her top lip that had it’s already alluring cupid’s bow accentuated by a dull rose colored lipstick. Her skin was flawless and smooth, tanned a golden color that looked like it had been affectionately kissed by the Sun itself. 

“Who are you?” She asked, her penetrating voice a surprising contradiction to her beautiful appearance. Killua also thought she sounded almost… disappointed? Or maybe bored?

“We are here to visit a friend that is staying on this floor.” Gon responded back, fiery amber eyes staring intently into the womans’. 

“A friend, huh? And who might that be?” Her eyes lit up for a split second, as if this news was intriguing to her. 

“His name is Zushi. He’s about our age and he wears a white gi. He’s a shingen-ryu master.”

Killua glanced from the woman to Gon. _Well, it’s probably better to tell the truth than a half-assed lie_ , he thought. _Gon is better with women anyway, so maybe this will work out and she will leave us alone._

“Hmm, I’m afraid I don’t recognize that name. You do look slightly familiar, though” She spoke as she slowly walked forward, sharp eyes looking over Gon as if in recognition. 

“What is your name, boy?” Her tone was now slightly playful, as if she already knew the answer but just wanted to confirm. 

“My name is Gon Freecss. I used to be a fighter here, about 3 or 4 years ago.” 

She smiled darkly, her lips twisting up into a seductive smirk. “Ah, yes I do recognize that name. As it turns out, I’m also looking for a friend. Maybe you can help me find him?” Her tone was poisoned honey, the sticky sweet flavor masking the deadly intent underneath. 

Killua finally interjected “Baaaka. Why should we help you?” Killua wanted her to focus on him instead. He was tensing up, readying to attack in case she tried to do anything against Gon.

She let out a small chuckle. “I wasn’t really asking”, and then she waived her hand out at them. 

They were both sent flying back from a powerful force, slamming into the wall behind them with a loud thud from the sudden attack. Killua immediately noticed he was stuck to the wall, and began struggling against the invisible restraints. He used gyo and saw that they were both being held to the wall with nen. 

_Tsk, even if I could escape, how would I get Gon?_ His mind began to run through hundreds of possibilities, but he was interrupted as the woman seemed to magically appear right in front of them. 

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you. My friend wouldn’t be very happy with me if I did, since he is actually a big fan of yours.” A mischievous smile ran across her face, as if she was laughing at a secret inside joke between her and her unknown friend. 

Gon wasn’t struggling against the restraints, as he figured it was probably hopeless to try and escape from a nen attack, though he didn’t like that they had been caught so easily. 

“Who is your friend?” Gon demanded

Before she could respond a playing card was sent flying through the air, just barely missing the woman's head as it lodged forcefully into the wall between Killua and Gon.

“Finally, the man I have been waiting for!” A dangerous smile formed on her face, and she acknowledge the new presence that had joined them. 

“I have been looking all over for you. I was just about to give up, but then your favorite toy miraculously showed up right in front of me.” Her voice was dark and beguiling as she turned around.

  
  


“Oiya Oiya, what do we have here? Hisashiburi, boys ~♥ ”

And then the owner of that sensuous voice appeared, sauntering into the hallway from the darkness with his familiar flaming hair. 

“Hisoka?!” Gon and Killua both yelled in surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I decided I wanted to add a note about the new character, she is based off a Greek Goddess so I'll be adding some greek mythology elements into the story. I won't give away who it is this early~


	2. Meetings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I'm excited to finally share this chapter! I really struggled with the pacing here, as I wanted to move the story further along but I also really want to give insight into Gon's inner thoughts. Gon is so interesting to me because he is so bright, happy, and friendly, and yet has been shown to have a dangerous affinity to darkness and sometimes referred to as a monster. Killua's "Gon, you are light" has always felt almost ominous to me, and I'm enjoying exploring the possibilities that brings into what the two characters might do in the future.

Gon and Killua looked on in surprise as Hisoka emerged from the darkness and began to approach them. He had his usual nonchalant smile on his face, but the boys’ were not fooled. His malevolent aura lashed out and mingled with the womans’, and Killua shivered as an icy chill ran down his spine.

Killua wished desperately that someone, anyone, would appear and relieve them from the suffocating tension that filled the air; But they were trapped, alone with only the soft hum of the air conditioner and the ominous taps of Hisoka’s footsteps. If he still had Illu-nii’s needle controlling him, he would have been consumed by his fear and desire to run away and been unable to think or move. Without it, he was able to stop and take a calming breath to bring him back to his senses.

Hisoka was now within only a few feet of them, and Killua glanced from the magician to the mystery woman. _If Hisoka was supposedly her friend, why would he be avoiding her so much that she captured us to use as bait?_

“Why did you say Hisoka was your friend? As long as I have known Hisoka, I have never known him to consider anyone a friend.” 

Of course it was Gon who broke the tension in the air, slicing through it like it had never existed at all. Killua noticed his friend’s serious expression and was reminded how useful it was to have someone who never hesitated to ask the questions that were burning in his mind. Gon had always been straight forward and asked about anything he wanted an answer to, even when facing a powerful opponent. 

Hisoka chuckled. “You always surprise me with your insights, Gon~” He lifted his hand and placed his index finger on his bottom lip in mock-thought. “I might consider you my friend, if you wanted me to be~” He mused playfully, glinting gold eyes fixed on Gon; But the boy said nothing, only stared intently back at Hisoka waiting for his question to be answered. 

“You are right though, I have not met this woman before and while I would call her many things, I would not call her my friend~” Hisoka finally broke their eye contact, and was now watching the woman. 

Gon nodded once in understanding, then turned his intense amber gaze on the woman as well. 

Her features seemed to turn more feline, eyes sharpening and smiling mischievously. “Ah, please forgive my bad manners. I have been keeping my eye on you for so long I forgot I hadn’t yet had the pleasure of meeting you in person. You do know who I am though, don’t you?” Her sweet tone betrayed her features, as if she was just like a cat that would affectionately approach you to pet it, only to turn and bite your hand. 

Hisoka’s smile was equally sharp. “Yes I had heard of a mysterious woman who was making her way up the floors impressively fast. Usagi-chan, was it? Interesting that you go by that name here when your _other fans_ know you better as Sirena. I did go to watch some of your fights, but you didn’t seem to be trying very hard, so I got bored~” Hisoka shrugged and continued, “I figured I would come play with you once you decided to get serious~”

Killua had been watching her closely, and again thought he saw a hidden emotion flash across her face. It had looked like agitation, but just as quickly as he thought he saw it, it was gone and replaced with a charming smile. This left him with more questions than it answered. 

_If she gets annoyed by Hisoka, why was she searching for him? And what did he mean by her ‘other fans’?_

Sirena took a few steps closer to Hisoka, now only about a foot away from each other. “Well, it’s just as you say, and now I am ready to get serious. I don’t want to fight you, though” Her smile grew as this seemed to surprise Hisoka. “I actually would like to team up with you, I believe we have a similar goal that would make us great partners.”

Hisoka was watching her closely, searching for the trap he must have suspected was in her words. “Partners, hmm? That could certainly be entertaining. What is our similar goal?” 

If she had been trying to be charming before, she really amplified that effort with her next question. Her body leaned suggestively closer to Hisoka, and her voice came out much more seductively than it had been previously. Killua had to focus to keep a blush from rising to his face from suddenly seeing something so intimate.

“I’ll tell you more about it, but not here in the hall. Will you please come to my room?” Her tantalizing words resonating with the magician.

“Now you have really piqued my interest. I certainly wouldn’t refuse a woman’s invitation to her bedroom~” Hisoka purred, seemingly stepping right into her trap.

_Baka! Why are adults so stupid? Even her name suggests she’s trying to lure you to your death!_ Killua yelled in his head, but he didn’t dare say anything that would interrupt them. If Hisoka wanted to get his head ripped off by this obvious maneater, _so be it,_ Killua thought with a huff. 

Sirena now turned to Gon and Killua, and with another wave of her hand released them from the wall, though their hands and feet were still bound together. Unable to catch themselves, they fell to the ground with a slight _thud._ Gon had been uncharacteristically quiet during the exchange, and Killua managed to take a quick glance at his friend while they were on the floor. Gon was still intently watching the woman, as if he was somehow still unsatisfied with her answer to his question. 

She looked from the boys back to Hisoka. “I’ll be keeping your toys with us as insurance that you stay on your best behavior, so make yourself useful and carry one of them back to the room.” 

Hisoka stepped closer to her, so close they were almost embracing. He lowered his head so his mouth was right next to her ear and with a breathy whisper, “Are you sure? They are older now, but they might still be too young to witness such… _adult activities~ ”_

His close contact seemed to have no effect on the woman though, as if she experienced this sort of intimate exchange on a regular basis. She lifted one hand to rest on his broad shoulder and brought her other hand up to his jaw, sharp nails digging in as she turned his face so she could stand on her tip-toes and whisper back in his ear,

_“I don’t care if we have an audience, but I don’t like to be kept waiting and I am at my limit_ ”

Hisoka shivered, her domineering words and actions clearly affecting him. He replied back huskily, gold eyes dark with desire “Okay, I will carry one of them back to your room.” 

And then their contact was broken, as Hisoka bent down and scooped Gon up in his arms. 

While Gon had not been resisting the nen restraints, he now inwardly cringed at Hisoka’s sudden contact, wishing the woman had been the one to carry him instead. Hisoka had always been someone who frightened him, but after their fight at Heaven’s Arena Gon had realized he was not out of reach. When they met again on Greed Island, Gon knew he was still not a match for the magician, but that he was getting closer. He had hoped he would eventually face him again someday, honoring the promise Hisoka had made him that the next time they fought, they would meet as equals in the real world with their lives on the line.

Now Hisoka was just a reminder not only of how powerless he had become, but also how he had lost so many of his previous hopes and goals. It felt too cruel to meet him here now, and Gon felt the pull of the feelings he had been trying to keep buried away rising up. The way he was being held felt like he was floating, and Hisoka’s strong hands were like weights threatening to drag him into the abyss that he had been desperately fighting to stay above. 

Gon’s lack of vigor did not go unnoticed by Hisoka. Realizing that something was wrong, he was able to pull his focus from the alluring woman to the oddly calm boy in his arms. His gold eyes studied Gon’s expressionless face, but the boy did not seem to notice as his murky amber eyes stared blankly ahead. 

_Why isn’t he saying anything?_ Hisoka wondered. The normal Gon would have been interjecting into Sirena and Hisoka’s conversation, demanding answers; But he hadn’t said a word since declaring he knew Hisoka didn’t have any friends. How much of the boys’ personality had changed in the few years since he had last seen him?

Sirena picked Killua up off the ground, but instead of carrying him she waved her hand again and the nen restraints around his feet disappeared. “I don’t really feel like carrying you, so you can walk. Do not try to run away though, or I will hurt your friend. Do you understand?” Her sharp tone was back, and Killua knew she meant what she had said. 

_We just need to keep playing it cool. We will learn more about their plans, and they will let us go once Hisoka agrees to help._ Killua was almost positive Hisoka would agree to partner up, so that meant they only needed to bide their time and they would be set free. He nodded at her, showing he understood.

“Alright then, you walk in front and I’ll walk right behind you. Hisoka will follow us.” She glanced back at Hisoka who smiled in return, and then she pointed down the hall towards her room.

Killua began to walk forward in the direction she had pointed, wishing he could check to make sure Gon was okay. He was surprised how quiet Gon had been, but then he remembered on their way in he had said he would not cause trouble for Killua. _Maybe this is his way of not causing trouble._ Knowing his friends’ mental state was still unstable, he hoped that his sudden meeting with Hisoka hadn’t sent him spiraling into darkness. 

As the odd procession crept down the hallway, Hisoka slowly started putting a small distance between him and Sirena. Once he was sure he was close enough she would know he was there, but not close enough to hear if he spoke, he lifted the boy up closer to his face and whispered so low in his ear that even with Gon’s sharp hearing he could barely make out the words.

“You are being awfully quiet, Gon. _I have known you for a long time_ , and I have never known you to sit idly by~” Hisoka used Gon’s earlier words against him now, hoping the recollection would bring some life back to the boy. And it worked, but instead of the fire he had expected to light behind those amber eyes, they grew darker than he had ever seen them before. 

“You don’t know anything.” Gon muttered, his voice low and threatening, cimmerian eyes rising to meet Hisoka’s. 

_Oh, don’t look at me like that!_ Hisoka thought, gripping Gon tighter against his firm chest. He chuckled, his aroused voice resonating deep in Gon’s ear. “Is that so? Well, you’ll have to enlighten me later~” He licked his lips, desperately trying to calm himself down from the anticipation of getting to play with both Sirena and Gon in one night. 

“You won’t be interested in me later.” Gon seemed to almost spit the words, and Hisoka raised his eyebrows at the boys’ unanticipated response.

Hisoka had known something was off, but now he was more curious than ever. What had turned the once bright and shining child with endless potential into a sullen, bitter teenager? He made a mental note that he would corner the boy later and force answers from him, no matter who got in his way. 

“Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you or Killua during this meeting. After all, who would I be to let someone else hurt my favorite toy?” His tone was playful, but then his smile faded and he looked straight in Gon’s eyes “and we **_will_ ** talk later~”. 

Hearing Killua’s name spoken was like someone had finally thrown him a lifeline as he was drowning, and he gasped for air as he clutched onto the thought of his friend. His mind rushed to the surface, and with it he felt panic rising. He twisted in Hisoka’s arms and desperately searched for his friend, finally spotting the familiar white hair walking unharmed a few paces ahead of them. 

Gon allowed himself to steady his breathing before turning back to look up and Hisoka. “Promise me you will protect Killua, and I will agree to talk to you later”, clear amber eyes pleading with Hisoka to accept his proposal. 

“I promise~ ♥”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> I had a really hard time coming up with the female characters name! I couldn't choose, so I gave her Sailor Moon's Japanese and American name in a nod to Naoko Takeuchi (Author of Sailor Moon) who also happens to be married to Togashi. I did change the spelling, I intentionally spelled it as Sirena in a nod to greek sirens. The name sort of fits since this character also has an affinity to magic~ 
> 
> Though that does beg another question, did Hisoka's inspiration come from Tuxedo Mask?


	3. Revelations

The rooms on the 200th floor at Heaven’s Arena were exactly as the boys’ remembered. 

Now inside Sirena’s room, Gon and Killua were both sitting at a small table between the massive king bed and the bay window overlooking the obscure city below. They had been roughly forced to sit in the wooden dining chairs, and the woman’s nen restraints were keeping them held firmly in place. Killua thought that the form of the nen felt familiar, but he couldn’t quite place where he might know it from. 

Hisoka was poised near the window with his eyes closed and his arms crossed over his chest, one long leg elegantly draped over the other so his ankles were touching as he leaned against the wall. Sirena was standing close to the bed so the table with the boys was between her and Hisoka, her weight unevenly distributed and one hand on the hip she had cocked to the side. 

“Well~?” Hisoka raised his eyes to look at the woman.

“I have been following you as you tracked down Chrollo, and we are after the same thing: Total extinction of the spiders.” 

She said it matter-of-factly, as if she had just said something as mundane as the weather, and not that she had just admitting to stalking Hisoka so he could help her murder 10 infamous criminals.

Wicked yellow eyes were suddenly glowing at her. “So we’re getting right to the point then? Isn’t there supposed to be foreplay before getting to the main event~?” He purred the words and waited for her to respond, but she said nothing. He feigned a disappointed sigh before continuing, “I do so love idle chit chat…”

“Will you work with me or not?” 

Hisoka smiled wryly at her obvious impatience. “Fine then, we’ll skip the small talk this time~ Why are you after the troupe?”

Her response was immediate and final: “Personal reasons.” 

  
  


Hisoka tilted his head slightly to the side, his proud jaw jutting out and calling attention to the delicate pink star painted on his cheek. “Aren’t partners supposed to share things with each other? If you won’t tell me your reasons, how do I know I’m not your real target~?” His voice drolled, clearly looking to dethrone her imperial tone. 

Unwavering, she replied flatly “That’s simple. If I had wanted to kill you, you would already be dead.” 

Hisoka chuckled, golden eyes glinting with mirth. “Confident, are you~? If you’re so confident you are that strong, why do you need me as a partner?”

The woman finally smiled venomously back at him, as if she had been expecting this question and resented the answer. “Trust me, if there was a way I could accomplish it without you, I would; But since there are 10 of them, all more skilled than the last, even I have to admit I can’t do it alone.” 

With growing amusement, Hisoka replied “They are certainly a challenge; And while you do look absolutely appetizing and are confident in yourself, I know nothing about your true powers. You might easily get yourself killed~”. 

The venom consumed the woman in an instant, hazel eyes poisoned dark with ire. “You doubt my abilities?” She hissed the question through clenched teeth, but seeing Hisoka’s aggravating grin cross his face allowed her to reel her anger back in. She wasn’t going to allow Hisoka to control her emotions that easily. 

“Very well, if you don’t believe I am stronger than you, then how about a deal? We will hold a match just like the ones here in Heaven’s Arena, except out in the real world. If I defeat you, then you join me and agree to follow my plan. If you win, then you can do what you want.”

Hisoka finally lost control of his aura and it flared out violently, as if she had thrown gasoline on a fire. “That works for me <3 I can hardly wait~ <3” 

He took a deep, shuddering breath trying to contain his bloodlust before it went too out of control. He raised a hand to grip like a vice on his shoulder, sharp nails digging in and drawing blood. Finally, with something that sounded like a guttural hum, he continued “What about these two? If you’re looking for strong allies, they were impressive enough to catch my attention~” 

The woman finally turned her attention to the boys who had been sitting in silence listening to Sirena and Hisoka’s negotiations. She considered them for a moment, calculating eyes sizing them up, and then firmly said “I don’t doubt they have potential, but no. I won’t involve these children and let them get themselves killed.”

Gon could no longer hold back. “We aren’t children anymore, and we could handle ourselves.” 

If Gon could still use his aura, Killua was sure it would have equaled Hisoka’s from a moment ago. Gon had never been able to back down from a challenge, even one that seemed totally hopeless. It was an old habit that had always gotten him into trouble, and had often put their lives at risk. Now it was even more dangerous when he wouldn’t even be able to defend against the simplest of nen attacks, let alone the ones the likes of Hisoka and the Troupe would be prepared to use against them. Killua couldn’t blame his friend too much though, as he was also mildly annoyed. He didn’t like to be underestimated either. 

“It’s true. We have fought them before, when we had just learned nen. We not only managed to fool them several times but even injured a couple of them.” Killua finished with a smirk, but instantly regretted it. The woman’s dark anger was back. 

“You really think you stand a chance? Even knowing Chrollo managed to kill Hisoka?” She was seething, and both boys' eyes went wide in surprise.

_Chrollo killed Hisoka?_

“What are you talking about? He’s standing right there isn’t he? Don’t mess with us!” Killua raised his voice, the disbelief he felt coming out as anger. 

Gon turned his head to stare at Hisoka, trying to see behind the implied smoke and mirrors. _If Hisoka was killed, how was he standing here?_ The magician appeared as he always had, and if there was a trick at play, Gon couldn’t see it. Not that he had ever been good at reading through Hisoka’s ploys, but even now he couldn’t see anything but the magicians’ solid presence.

The woman’s angry hazel eyes glowered at Hisoka. “You never told them what happened to you?” 

The magician sighed. _I had wanted to keep this a secret so I could surprise them later~_ “You did hear me say it has been a while since I have seen them, didn’t you? I just hadn’t had the chance yet~”

Gon and Killua couldn’t tear their gaze from Hisoka. They couldn’t imagine Hisoka losing to anybody, even the mysterious boss of the Phantom Troupe. Gon felt his head getting light and his chest felt like it was burning. He wondered if his body was going into shock, but then he realized he hadn’t taken a breath since she had first spoken of Hisoka dying. _He was killed?_ Gon had meant to keep that thought to himself, but he had actually spoken the words aloud, and with that finally took in a painful, shallow breath.

Sirena was the one to answer him, “Yes, he was killed. Now show them what happens to someone who challenges the Phantom Troupe”. 

“As you wish~” Hisoka shrugged and finally moved from his place against the wall. He went over to the window and perched lazily on the sill, seated far back enough so even his long legs didn’t touch the floor. His feet waved coyly back and forth in the air.

“It might shock you, though~”. He grinned mischievously, and Gon and Killua sucked in a breath as the horror was revealed.

Hisoka’s grin was gone, but not because he had stopped smiling. His lips were burned off, blackened flesh pulled back tightly so his teeth and gums were exposed in an eternally vicious snarl. Where his nose had once been was now a black hole where you could see the edges of his skull if you dared to look close enough. Angry red scars suddenly adorned his neck where it had been sliced across and roughly healed back together like haunting necklaces. 

Gon had to fight the urge to flinch away, but he didn’t dare take his eyes off of Hisoka as he kept examining what else was wrong with him. Besides his face, the fingers on his left hand had disappeared down past the first knuckle. The shoe that was on his right foot fell to the floor, bouncing quietly to the side after hitting the plush carpet. The pant leg of his right leg went slack with it and though Gon couldn’t see to confirm, he imagined a majority of the lower half of the magician's leg would also be missing. 

Neither Gon or Killua could speak, too horrified to do anything but stare as The Grim Reaper unveiled his true face. 

Hisoka then took a white scarf from his pocket with his good hand and draped it over the stump that was his other hand. After a moment, he pulled the scarf away dramatically to reveal his fist as he uncurled his long, elegant fingers that had been missing just mere moments ago. He then waved his repaired hand over his face, and his beautiful features appeared once again, his mischievous smile returning as if it had never left. He dropped the scarf over his foot, but instead of falling to the ground it stopped in mid air, an invisible object suddenly catching it and causing an outline of a foot to appear underneath the fabric. Hisoka used his repaired fingers to flick his aura towards the forgotten shoe, and with a snap it returned to his hand. 

The two boys couldn’t believe what they had just seen, it felt too sudden and strange. Killua couldn’t figure out how the mangled magician had cheated death and still managed to stand before them, but now he understood why his Father had told him to stay clear of the Troupe. One could only face them if they were prepared to risk death, and Hisoka had paid the price. 

Gon swallowed dryly, his head spinning. 

“You… really died?” Gon’s voice was hoarse and barely over a whisper.

The red-haired man slipped his shoe back on his false foot in one swift motion, and then stood and walked closer to where the boys were sitting. As he walked, his repaired hand clenched and unclenched in the air in front of them so they could see his replaced fingers. He closed his fist before he pointed his index finger upwards like Bisky used too, using his aura to show a heart and then a skull. 

“Yes, I really died~” Narrowed golden eyes glancing from Killua to Gon before he abruptly turned and returned to his previous spot. Once he was back in his position of leaning against the wall, he explained further: 

“Yes I fought Chrollo here at Heaven’s Arena about 2 years ago and lost. It was a magnificently entertaining battle~♥” He brought his hands up in front of him as if gripping something invisible, and his eyes fluttered erotically upwards. “Yes, it was a beautiful fight~ I don’t regret it at all. I miscalculated, but I was able to plan enough so that when I died, my nen would return as Bungee Gum to restart my heart and lungs. I really must thank The Boss, since my nen after death has even been enhanced~”. Whether to emphasize what he was saying or because his lust was consuming him, his aura flexed out bigger and more malicious than it ever had before.

“So you were broken, too” Gon uttered, barely audible. The 3 others looked at him curiously, but then the woman spoke:

“Now you boys understand what it means to fight against them. This idiot only managed to be revived because of his strong desire not to lose a fight. That was the only reason his nen had a purpose and anchor to attach to after he died, and how he was able to restore himself.” The weight of her severe words hung heavy in the air, and for a moment nobody said anything.

And then, 

“We may not be able to fight against them, but we could still be useful. We want to defeat the troupe too!” 

For the first time all night, the old Gon was back and his determination was clear. No one was going to be able to tell him no. Killua looked mildly concerned but said nothing, wanting to pick their battles carefully. Hisoka looked greatly amused. 

Sirena had expected this sort of reaction from the boy who had caught and held Hisoka’s usually fleeting interest. When she had been investigating Hisoka’s past for clues to find him, she had started with his time at Heaven’s Arena since he was a well-known name there. Most of his fights were relatively boring. If his opponent didn’t entertain him they were immediately killed, and even if they were mildly interesting he would unnerve them with demoralizing mind games _and then_ kill them. 

In all of Hisoka’s time fighting at the arena, only two of his opponents had been spared after their initial fight: The first was Kastro, a well-built and promising young man with long white hair. He returned after 2 years to challenge Hisoka again, and actually did manage to dismember both of Hisoka’s arms. In the end though, he became frantic when Hisoka actually found amusement in his attacks and figured out how to counter Kastro’s double. Just as the magician mockingly predicted during the match, he died in a frenzy after his expected response bored Hisoka. 

The only other one to face the Grim Reaper and walk away with their life was this boy. 

She almost hadn’t recognized him when she saw him in the hallway of the 200th floor, and she was thankful that during her investigation she had also watched the 3 other fights Gon had fought in before challenging Hisoka. In his second fight against a man named Gido, after triumphantly defeating his opponent he had threatened to smash the man’s face with his fist if he hurt someone named Zushi. So when he had mentioned they were here again to visit someone named Zushi, the name clicked in her mind and she realized who he was. 

He had changed considerably from what she remembered of his appearance in his past fights. He had grown about a foot taller, and now was almost an equal to Hisoka in height (If the latter wasn’t wearing heels). Gon’s years spent training were evident even hidden by clothes, and she knew he must have put in gruelling hours to tone his body. His once spiked hair had been tamed and now laid down relaxed with a few pieces framing his face, the faint green tint along the black more noticeable against his tanned skin. He had also changed from his iconic green outfit, and though he appeared to be more muted, it amused her that his jacket was still a similar bright green color and his amber eyes blazed now as they once had. 

_He really is a rare talent,_ and she found herself regretting what was to come; But she hardened her heart, and continued with her plan.

“You misunderstand, child. I did say you shouldn’t fight the troupe, but I never said you wouldn’t be useful.” She turned away from him then, and began drawing aura into her hand. 

Killua was instantly on high alert, suspecting she was up to foul play. “What do you mean?”

She laughed once, dry and devoid of humor. “As you know, Hisoka is known to deceive and trick people. It’s part of the reason I chose him as a partner, since it reminds me of a good friend of mine.” She turned around, revealing a hint of a disappearing smile at the recalled memory and her left hand covered in chains that were an identical match for those used by Kurapika. 

“But you see, I have no time for those games right now. I figured even if he agreed to fight me, he would use the opportunity to kill me so he could fight the troupe alone.” Her smile was long gone now, dark and threatening eyes narrowing on Hisoka.

Hisoka was clearly amused, but feigned a pout at her apparent ability to read through his poorly hidden intentions. “Am I really that easy to read~? You and Gon both seem to know me so well~” 

She laughed again, still just as dryly, and outstretched her hand with the chains towards Hisoka. “Shouldn’t you always call a spade a spade? I thought you more than anyone would appreciate that.” 

Hisoka looked relaxed, but Killua could tell he was really coiled like a snake, preparing to strike the woman down. _The two claim to be different, but they’re both playing games with each other._ Killua glanced at both of them, blue eyes shifting between them, wondering who would be the victor if they were to leap into action right here and now. He didn’t know anything about the woman’s abilities, but if Hisoka had managed to escape death from even the Troupe, he would put his money on the enduring magician. 

Before either of them could act, Sirena spoke again. “When I was researching the Troupe and Chrollo, I learned about the interesting abilities of the Kurta boy they referred to as the Chain User. I found his power fascinating, so I had to acquire it for myself.” 

_She can wield Kurapika’s power?!_ This information shocked both Killua and Gon, and Killua regretted putting his mental bet on Hisoka winning. _If she can acquire others’ abilities, that puts her in a different league!_

Hisoka didn’t share the boys’ surprise, but he was keeping a more watchful eye on her hand. “So you’re going to use the Judgement Chain on me? To keep me from killing you~?” 

She smirked seductively, brilliant hazel eyes alight with threatening promise. 

“Who said anything about using it on you?” 

And with that, she plunged the chain into Gon’s chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This felt like a really short update, I'm sorry! Originally I wanted it to go longer, but I love ending chapters on /dramatic/ lines. I promise the next chapter will be longer! As always any feedback or suggestions are much appreciated. ♥
> 
> Second note: After letting this chapter sit in my mind for a few days, I wasn't totally happy with how it was written. I made some minor edits that I hope improved the quality, but no major portions of this chapter were changed. :)


	4. Connections

Gon gasped in surprise before collapsing and going silent.

Killua screamed and violently flung himself at the woman to stop her, but the restraints kept him attached to the chair and they both fell to the ground with a loud _thud_ as the chair took the brunt of the impact. Hisoka also lunged at her, crossing the room with a movement so rapid he appeared to teleport. In an instant, his large hand wrapped around the woman’s throat, claw-like nails digging into her soft skin as he held her suspended a few inches above the ground. She wasn’t struggling against his sudden attack, but her breathing was labored as she uttered:

“There, now if you kill me, the boy will die too.” 

Killua yelled from his place on the ground, “I thought you didn’t want us to die?! Now Gon’s death is all but gauranteed!” 

He was fighting furiously against his restraints but couldn’t manage to move from his place on the floor. Whatever her ability was, it was as aggravatingly effective and he couldn’t think of a way to wiggle loose.  _ Curse this lying woman!  _ Killua thought in rage, silently vowing to himself to kill her first and Hisoka second if Gon died. His ice cold blue eyes found her emotionless hazel ones and as she stared at him, the woman’s hands rose to grab Hisoka’s forearm to give her some minor relief so she could speak clearer. 

“I don’t want him to die, but it’s Hisoka’s choice now. If he kills me and the boy dies, then that is his fault. Not mine.” 

Hisoka’s hand grew tighter around her neck, and now she was struggling to breath. His cruel yellow eyes were no longer amused, and Killua was sure that was the only time he had ever seen the magician actually look that furiously at someone.  _ This isn’t good, he’s going to fly into a rage and end up killing her! _ Killua’s mind was racing, desperately trying to come up with a plan that would somehow allow him to free himself from the chair and stop Hisoka before he could kill the woman. Killua could think of nothing, no escape or way out, and he felt panic and anger rising to sting his eyes as hysteric tears filled them. 

“Killua, Hisoka. It’s okay.” Gon’s soft voice rang out and momentarily calmed the intensity in the room.

“Baka! Are you insane?! How is this okay?” Killua cried back angrily, fighting to keep his tears from spilling out. He was thrashing violently against the chair, attempting to shatter it so he could run to his friend, but  _ the stupid fucking chair wouldn’t break!  _ He tried repeatedly, jerking movements that were damaging him more than the chair. When he realized his attempts were futile, he let out an anguished yell as he slammed the chair against the hardwood floor in one last desperate attempt. When the chair still did not break, Killua went limp with his face buried to the ground as the hot tears finally flowed freely. 

Gon turned to look at Hisoka and their eyes locked in an exchange that must have confirmed something between them. Hisoka obeyed Gon’s unspoken command and released the woman and Sirena fell to the floor gasping as precious air filled her burning lungs. Disregarding his previous victim, Hisoka stepped around the woman and bent down to pick the chair Killua was attached to up off the ground and set the young assassin upright again. 

Gon spoke calmly as she regained her breath, “It’s okay. If you want to use me in your plan, that’s fine. But if you’re going to use me as insurance, you have to keep us around.”

She was still recovering but managed a raspy “Why?”

“If you can use me against Hisoka, then the troupe will figure that out too. If they learn about that weakness, then I really will die and they will be able to manipulate you both.” Even though he was speaking of his own death, the boy showed no fear, as if he was only telling her because he was genuinely concerned of them being taken advantage of at his expense. 

Before Sirena could reply, Hisoka suddenly grabbed a handful of her hair and raised her forcefully from the ground. In a flash, a card appeared in his other hand and he held it’s razor sharp edge against her throat as his lethal gaze landed on Gon. 

“What makes you think I won’t kill her anyway? Even a favorite toy can be replaced~”. 

Though everything about what Hisoka was doing was threatening, Gon could see through his act. “I can tell you won’t kill her because if you really wanted to you would have. Well, it doesn’t really matter anyway. I’ll offer you a deal on top of Sirena-san’s.”

This caught Hisoka’s interest. “Oh, and what do you have to offer~?”

“If you work with her, we’ll heal your injuries.” 

Hisoka and Killua both went wide eyed in surprise, and the white haired teen who had finally recovered his composure lost it again as he shouted “Baka! We can’t do that!”

Gon’s resolve was firm. “Nanika could, just like she did for me.” 

“No way! Are you crazy? I would never let Nanika heal him! He threatened to kill us in the past, in case you forgot!” Killua couldn’t believe what his friend was suggesting.  _ Doesn’t he know what Hisoka is capable of?! _

_ “ _ He also helped me pass the Hunter Exam, kept us from going through the nen initiation on the 200th floor when we arrived, and was the reason we were able to defeat Razor on Greed Island.” Gon didn’t really like how much Hisoka had helped them over the years, but he couldn’t deny that even if his intentions were nefarious, they wouldn’t be as strong as they were today without the magician's help. 

“Baka, why do you think he did that? He only helped us so we would get stronger to make us more of a challenge to fulfill his sick desires! No way - I won’t have Nanika heal Hisoka only so he can kill us later.” 

Hisoka interjected into their conversation with an eerie chuckle. “Aren’t you going to ask me if I would even accept that deal~?”

“No one cares what you want!”

A smile crept across Hisoka’s face and he recalled the card, vanishing it into thin air with a  _ poof. _ He let go of Sirena’s hair and in one long stride he was looming over Killua. Hisoka put one hand on the chair above Killua’s shoulder and leaned in so they were face to face, his breath warm on the assassin’s cheek. 

“It would be fun to kill her and Gon and see your rage~” Hisoka purred, and Killua struggled against his grip on the chair as the magician continued, “But, it would be more fun to fight the Boss and the other spiders fully healed.” 

Killua was seething. “No way.”

_ Ah Killua, you’re more like Illumi than you know. No fun to play with unless I threaten the one most precious to you.  _

Hisoka laughed internally at the thought, and stepped back from Killua, giving the boy space to breathe. He moved to stand besides Gon, and this time rested his hand on Gon’s shoulder. 

“You want to protect Gon, right? If you’ll have sister dearest heal me, I’ll be Gon’s personal body guard and ensure his protection during this mission~” _ Heheh, then you really won’t be able to escape me, Gon~ _

“I don’t need you to protect me.” 

Gon’s angry amber eyes glowering up at the man next to him. If there was a message Gon was trying to convey with his lethal gaze, Hisoka ignored it this time. The magician’s features were sharp in dark amusement as he extended one long finger to tilt Gon’s head to the side so he was forced to look directly into his eyes. 

“Are you sure? Normally I would agree, but something about you today has seemed… off. Is there a reason you haven’t used your nen even once since I arrived~?” Hisoka finally asked the question he had been wondering all night, hoping that diving right into the topic Gon clearly wanted to avoid would make the boy reveal whatever was wrong. 

Gon, knowing what Hisoka was fishing for, didn’t take the bait. “No.” 

“Oh Gon, you always were a horrible liar~” He took Gon’s face in hand, gripping his jaw and forcing his cheeks to puff up. Hisoka could see the anger that had been in the boy’s eyes before had only been an ember, and now it was a scorching hot fire.  _ Ah, I really do love when you look at me like that~ _

Hisoka then broke their eye contact and turned to look at Killua, not letting go of Gon’s face.

“I wonder if Killua would agree that you don’t need protecting?”

Killua didn’t know how to respond. If he said Gon didn’t need protecting, the magician would definitely try to attack him to prove his weakness; But if he said that Gon did need protecting, he wasn’t sure if Gon would take that as a betrayal and sink further into despair.  _ What do I say? How can I protect Gon when I can’t even free myself from this damn chair! _

A lightbulb went off in Killua’s head. He turned to the woman sitting like a statue on the floor, stone cold eyes carefully watching the scene unfolding in front of her.

“Hey lady” 

The white haired teenager addressed the woman, and her hazel eyes glanced up at him but her stance otherwise didn’t change. Now that she wasn’t looming over them, he realized she was actually small and delicate looking. Her once perfectly placed brown hair was now a mess from Hisoka’s rough handling, and the makeup around her eyes was smudged from tears that had escaped her eyes when she had been gasping for breath. With her now visible imperfections, she looked less like a threatening deity and almost more like a normal human woman. Almost.

“Can you use that chain on Hisoka this time?” He asked, and she raised an eyebrow at his question. 

“I want you to use the chain on Hisoka with a rule I set for him. If he agrees to the rule, I’ll go along with Gon’s plan.”

Sirena slowly stood and dusted herself off. She ran her fingers through her hair attempting to fix it, but her effort only made her chocolate mane look more untamed. With her smudged makeup and wild hair she really looked like an angry deity ready for battle. Once she was ready, she drew aura back into her hand. The chains reappeared and she pointed the manicured finger with the judgement chain directly at Hisoka.

“What do you want the rule to be?” 

_ What should the rule be?  _ Killua knew the wording would have to be carefully considered so the clever magician couldn’t find a loophole.  _ If I say “Don’t kill Gon”, that still doesn’t mean he has to protect him. _ Hisoka could leave Gon alone and one of the Spiders could kill him and Hisoka would face no consequences.  _ However, if I say something like “Always protect Gon”, that could also jeopardize the mission.  _ If they were suddenly caught in an ambush and Hisoka rushed to Gon’s side, their partnership would be revealed and the Troupe would only further target Gon to get at Hisoka.  _ Damnit, _ he wasn’t sure if this was the right choice but it was all he could think of:

“‘Hisoka will always act in Gon’s best interest.’ That’s the rule. If you want to get healed you’ll accept it.”

Hisoka’s smile was as sharp as a blade. “Okay~” 

Sirena sent the chain stabbing into Hisoka’s chest, just as she had done to Gon. He sucked in air at the pain, but otherwise appeared unaffected. He let go of Gon’s face and put his hand over the part where the chain had just been. After a moment, he bowed his head slightly towards Gon.

“I’m now in your service~” His grin was still wicked, golden eyes narrow with immense enjoyment at the boy’s predicament. Gon replied by sticking his tongue out at the infuriating magician.

Smirking, the red haired man went to sit on the window sill. 

With her work done and sighing heavily, Sirena sat on the edge of the bed. She waved her hands and the restraints around the boys were finally lifted, and they both eagerly stood up to stretch their stiff muscles. Killua was shooting daggers at Hisoka, who only sat at the window with his eyes closed, a soft smile painted on his face. Gon was glancing at the woman, concern clouding his face as he took in the rough state she was in. He knew women were just as tough as men, but he still didn’t like to see them hurt. 

“Where is the person that can heal Hisoka?” 

Sirena asked the question, as she realized no one had actually said where this mystery sister was. Even Hisoka seemed to know she was real and that she existed somewhere, since he hadn’t asked any further questions about her ability to heal him. 

Killua answered her bluntly, “Oh, that’s right, you don’t know. She’s back at my families’ house on Kukuroo Mountain.”

“How will she heal him?”

“I can’t tell you much, but we will have to go back to my house. She has to touch the person she is trying to heal” Even that felt like divulging too much information, but Killua knew it was better to get straight to the point than trying to dance around it. 

The woman nodded. “I see. Well then, I suggest you go right away. As soon as you return we will start the mission.” 

“Okay, the three of us will leave first thing in the morning.” 

At the mention of three, she frowned. “Actually, Gon will stay here with me as insurance that you both return. Besides, we should get used to moving in pairs from now on. Either Hisoka or I will be with one of you at all times.”

Killua hated the idea of leaving Gon behind, but he knew they were following her rules now. 

“Okay. It won’t take us very long anyway.” 

Killua glanced at Gon, who was smiling and giving him a thumbs up. “I’m counting on you, Killua!” 

Killua put his hands behind his head and turned his face away to hide his smile “Yea, whatever. You owe me big time for this.” 

Gon smiled sheepishly in return as he always did, and then he suddenly remembered:

“Zushi!” 

Gon quickly pulled his cell phone out of pocket, and realized he had several missed calls from their friend. Killua opened his phone to see the same was true for him. Gon pressed the call button impatiently, and he didn’t have to wait longer than one ring before Zushi answered:

“Gon! Are you and Killua okay? I’ve been sensing some insane auras on the 200th floor and when I didn’t hear from you two I wondered if something had happened!” 

“Ah, we’re really sorry, Zushi! We didn’t mean to make you worry. We are both okay, I promise! We will come over soon and explain more.” Gon knew this was something that couldn’t be said over the phone, maybe couldn’t even be said in person. He hated lying and keeping secrets. 

“Okay, I’m just glad you’re both alright. I will see you when you get here, then!” 

“Okay, see you soon!’ And with that, Gon hung up the phone and returned it to his pocket. He was turning to leave when the woman stopped him.

“Where do you think you’re going? Didn’t you hear me say you and Killua can’t go somewhere without Hisoka or myself?”

Of course Gon hadn’t forgotten, but he didn’t know that the rule even applied to the Arena. He bowed his head slightly, apologetically saying “I’m sorry, I didn’t forget, but we need to visit Zushi and let him know what’s going on. It’s not something that should be explained over the phone.”

She knew the boy wasn’t lying to her, but she still didn’t like the idea. A lot of dangerous people hung around the arena and were always on the prowl for a challenge, even if it wasn’t an official match. If anyone found out about his relationship to Hisoka, that would make him even more of a target. Challengers were always looking for even the smallest piece of information that might help them beat the Grim Reaper. 

Killua loudly cleared his throat.

“I’m probably not on you or Hisoka’s level, but I’m more than capable of protecting Gon and I for one night.” 

“One night? It would take you all night to meet with your friend?”

‘Ah, no. But before we came here we booked a room at the hotel for hunters, so if we don’t show back up tonight that will raise red flags and they will send people out to look for us.” That piece of information was actually a fact, one he hadn’t even gotten a chance to tell Gon about yet.

_ Well, how was I supposed to know we would end up in this crazy situation? _

“Very well, you two may go out on your own. Make sure to do anything you need to prepare, because you might not get the chance once we start. This will be the last time I let you leave unsupervised.”

Gon and Killua both nodded in agreement, satisfied with the compromise.

“Before you go, come here.”

She beckoned them to walk over to her, and they approached her cautiously. She held out both of her hands, palms facing up, and gestured for each of them to grab one of her hands. They both did as instructed, and as soon as she had made contact, aura was glowing in her hands. Then just as suddenly as it had been there, her aura was gone, and she was releasing their hands. A strange mark that vaguely resembled a torch was inscribed on their palms like a tattoo. Once they acknowledged it, it glowed brightly before vanishing without a trace. They looked at her in confusion. 

“The mark is something like a homing symbol. I’ll be able to track you anywhere in the world with that.” 

“Ah, what? That’s so cool!” Gon exclaimed, impressed by her ability. He had never heard of such an interesting way to use nen for tracking. That would definitely be a practical skill for a hunter to have. 

She returned Gon’s smile with a faint one of her own. “Now go. Be back here by 9 a.m sharp.” 

“Okay, you can count on us! Thank you, Sirena-san!” and with that, the two boys were hurriedly running out the door before anyone could change their minds. 

The door closed behind them, and Hisoka and Sirena were left alone. 

Sirena rose wordlessly from where she was sitting on the bed and started walking towards the bathroom, desperately wanting a shower and relief from this endless night. She was just thinking how nice a hot shower would be when Hisoka was suddenly behind her in the narrow hallway. In a flash, one large hand was clasped over her smaller hands, pinning them above her on the wall. His other hand was clutching her hip as he dug his nails into her.

“I’ve let you play with me long enough, now it’s my turn~” 

The magician moaned the words devilishly in her ear, his hot breath making her skin crawl. Sirena jerked back from the surprise contact, making it seem like she was fighting against him. He welcomed her implied challenge by taking a tasting bite of her ear and forcing more of his lower body weight against her, effectively holding her firmly against him and the wall. He released his hand from on top of hers, but they remained stuck to the wall courtesy of his Bungee Gum. 

“Now then~”

With his free hand Hisoka ran the pad of his index finger down her bare back, his feather light touch sending shivers down her spine where it lingered. Sirena could feel his growing excitement pressing hard and throbbing against her. She needed to end this soon or he really would have his way with her, and she wouldn’t be able to hold herself back either. She felt his nimble fingers moving to release the clasp holding the collar of her shirt together, and knew it was now or never. She jerked her head suddenly to stop his fingers, and turned her head so she could look at him over her shoulder. 

“Are you sure you want to do that? You said you knew who I was.” 

Her smirk was wicked and seductive and every bit as threatening as if she had suddenly pointed a knife at him. For the second time that night his hand reached out and grabbed a fistful of her hair, pulling her head back to expose more of her neck. His wet tongue licked slowly from her collar bone, up her neck, finally landing on her ear again so he could whisper darkly:

“I’m not like your usual prey. I won’t run away once your true nature is revealed~” 

Her full lips curved up into a sinister smile, and she laughed dryly at his statement.  _ Well, true enough _ she thought. 

“Fine, if you want an unforgettable fuck I’ll show you a good time”, each syllable dripping from her sensuous lips like honey, “But at least let me get a glass of wine to dull my senses, or I really will be too tempted to rip your head off when we’re done.” 

Her words were like a venus fly trap emitting a tantalizing scent to lure it’s prey close enough to allow her to reach out and consume it. And of course, as men always did, he took the bait and decided to fly too close to the sun just as Icarus had, only to fall once they melted like putty in her beautiful hands. 

The nen holding her to the wall faded away, and just when she thought she was finally free, Hisoka was spinning her around and grabbing under her thighs to hoist her up into a lust fueled embrace. Playing along with his movements, Sirena wrapped her slender legs around his waist and threw her arms behind his head and allowed her fingers to twist into his surprisingly soft crimson hair. His lips met hers in a bruising kiss and she tugged at his hair against the pain. He was sucking and kissing hard at her full lips, and she was sure they would be swollen the next day. He bit her lower lip and elicited a divine moan from her provocative mouth. With her lips parted, his tongue entered her mouth and hungrily explored every inch within his reach. 

When they finally surfaced for air, Sirena realized he had managed to cross the room while holding her and they were now standing in the small kitchen area. 

The magician lowered her slowly, allowing her to find her shaky footing on the ground before releasing her. Her legs felt weak, and she laughed bitterly at herself in her head.  _ Damn, I really am losing my touch if I’m weak just from that.  _

She set off to work in the compact kitchen, easily finding two wine glasses and setting them gracefully on the luxurious marble counter. She went to the small stainless steel fridge and brought out two very different wine bottles, holding them up for Hisoka to consider.

“Which would you prefer?” She asked coyly, as if his choice really mattered. “Most would probably think you would enjoy something sweet,” she slightly lifted up the bottle of the pink moscato, “But I think, if you’re like me, you prefer the bitterness of a good red.” She lifted the bottle of Merlot in comparison to the other like she was weighing the choices. 

Molten gold eyes met hers and a smile played at his still shining lips. “You do know me so well~”

She put the discarded moscato back in the fridge, the glass bottle clinking against the shelf as she closed the door. Sirena walked back over to the counter where the glasses were and held the bottle out for Hisoka to take it, but when he only raised an eyebrow at her she simply said “You open it.”

He took the bottle from her hand, their fingers grazing and a jolt of electricity running between them. He took one sharp nail and dug it into the cork, then using Bungee Gum pulled it from its place with a slight _pop._ He sat the bottle on the counter before walking over to discard the cork in the trash. Sirena poured them each a glass, and when he returned she handed him one of the glasses before taking one for herself. 

Hisoka brought the glass up to his nose, inhaling the delectable scent of the deep ruby colored merlot. It was a sweet mix of cherries, plums and a hint of vanilla. He could also smell some spices deep in that would be the culprit of it’s bitter flavor, though he couldn’t place what it might be. He brought the glass to his lips but he did not take a sip, yellow eyes carefully watching the woman. Noticing his hesitation, she rolled her eyes at him.

“Do you really think I poisoned your drink?” Exaggerating a frown in mock annoyance, she took the glass abruptly from his hand and took a sip. Swallowing the bitter liquid, she handed the glass back to its original owner. “There, see? Nothing to worry about.”

Accepting her gesture, he tilted his head back and drank the whole cup in one swift gulp. A stray drop of wine fell at the corner of his mouth, and his long pink tongue licked across his lips to catch it. 

“Now, where were we~?” 

Hisoka was back on her in an instant, lifting her into the same hold as before. She had to frantically tighten her grip on her glass to prevent any wine from sloshing out at the sudden movement. She gripped clumsily at his shirt with her free hand, desperately holding on to keep from falling. He carried her over to the bed where he lowered himself so he could sit on the edge with her straddled on his lap. His lips connected with hers, his kiss now sweet and bitter from the alcohol. He tried to grab the cup from her hand so he could set it aside and dive deeper into her, but she moved her hand out of his reach and pushed him so he lay flat on the bed. 

“Are you going to tease me all night~?”

His words weren’t menacing but she knew he meant it as a threat. He would only be able to hold back for so long, and she knew it was time to end this game. Sirena smirked at him and took a big swig of her drink, then set it on the bedside table. She turned back to the man beneath her and leaned down as if she was going to kiss him, but at the same time she brought her palm up to rub deliciously against his groin. A deep moan left his lips, and with his mouth open she caught him in a surprise kiss. His eyes went wide as he realized she still had the wine in her mouth, and the sticky sweet liquid was now pouring into his.

Hisoka swallowed the wine and then pushed further into her kiss.

He was forcefully lifting himself up from the bed as he wrapped his arms around her. Sirena clawed at his shirt, and he allowed their contact to be broken long enough for her to rip the fabric over his head. Then he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her off his lap, throwing her aggressively down on the bed. Quick fingers discarded her shoes and undid the button of her pants before pulling them roughly down her legs. Then he was back on top of her, kissing and biting at the delicate flesh of her thighs, working his way up until he came to the fabric of her shirt. 

Hisoka went to undo the clasp behind her neck, but found his fingers were rapidly going numb. His head was spinning, whether from the wine or the thrill of the encounter he wasn’t sure. His body was growing heavy, and his arms shook as he strained to keep his full weight from crashing down on her. He could barely keep his eyes open, and he realized too late that she must have been the culprit for his mysterious symptoms. She didn’t seem to notice his distress, and used the break in his advances to trail kisses from his exposed chest up to his neck before moving out from underneath him. No longer fearing falling on top of her, he rolled over onto the bed. The room was spinning, but he managed to focus on her face. 

“What….did you… do to me?” He clumsily muttered, barely able to form the words. 

A villainous smile painted her lips as she lifted her wine glass from the bedside table and raised it to him as if to say  _ cheers. “ _ It’s true, I didn’t poison your drink; But I never said anything about mine.”

Hisoka’s mind was going in and out, but he did catch phrases here and there as she spoke like ‘ _ won’t kill you’  _ and  _ ‘strong narcotic’  _ and  _ ‘sleep for 12 hours’.  _ The edges of his sight were growing dark when the beautiful woman suddenly appeared right in front of him and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. Her hazel eyes were glowing darkly over him, and she ran her fingers delicately over his cheek.

“It really would have been an unforgettable night, but if we had continued I really couldn’t have stopped myself from tearing you apart.”

Hisoka gasped in surprise before collapsing and going silent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhh, this is my first attempt at any smut so I hope you enjoyed it! This ended up being my longest chapter so far because of it, but I had the idea of the wine and I couldn't get it out of my head.


	5. Respite

On the other side of the door Gon and Killua both exhaled strongly, reveling in the air outside the tense room. They were both grateful to have made it through the calamitous situation they had found themselves in, somehow both still alive. The events weighed heavy on them for a long minute; but then they looked at each other with huge smiles, high-fived twice and then clasped hands like they always did after one of their crazy plans succeeded. 

Killua started to turn to head towards Zushi’s room when Gon gripped his hand tighter and pulled him back, effortlessly catching the white haired boy in a warm hug. 

Killua felt heat rising to burn his cheeks, but he didn’t pull away. In rare moments like this, he easily welcomed his friend’s surprise affection. Feeling Killua returning his embrace, Gon squeezed him tighter, his strong arms wrapping around the former assassin in a way that threatened to never let go. Gon was eternally thankful for the one friend who had always stood by his side through everything, no matter what. Killua had become like family to him, like his other half, and he realized now as he held Killua close to him why their time apart had been so painful: 

He didn’t want to live without Killua by his side. 

“Killua, I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have brought Nanika up, but it was the only thing I could think to do.” Gon really did feel guilty for further endangering Alluka.

“Baka, if you’re going to do something you know you’ll want to apologize for, don’t do it in the first place. “

Gon didn’t say anything, but he nodded his head slowly into Killua’s shoulder. 

“Well anyway, Hisoka probably could have paid Illumi to have Nanika heal him if he had wanted to, so it’s honestly good we got to use it as a bribe before Illumi could.” Killua put his hand on the back of Gon’s head and gently stroked his hair before continuing “I’m just glad you’re alive, so don’t stress about it.”

For the first time, it was Gon’s turn to blush at his friends' affectionate words. He felt so happy and surprised by what Killua admitted that he couldn’t help but let a cheerful laugh escape his lips. Killua abruptly pulled away at the jest, his face cherry tomato red. 

“Baka! Don’t laugh at me when you say stuff like that all the time!” He huffed and shoved his hands in his pockets and started walking off. 

“Ah, I’m sorry Killua!” Gon laughed again and followed after him, but didn’t say anything else, not that he needed to. Killua knew Gon felt the same way. 

  
  


\---

They met up with Zushi and decided to meet Wing-san out for dinner. The stories and laughter were as plentiful as the food. They heard all about Zushi’s ascent to the 200th floor, everything between his most aggravating losses to his biggest triumphs. He had become much more proficient in nen and had even developed his own Hatsu, though he had insisted on keeping it a secret in case he ever fought Gon or Killua. That had been the only low point of the dinner, when Zushi had slipped and said he wanted to challenge Gon to a fight. Gon had smiled it off, refusing to let his discomfort cause the night to become awkward. 

After dinner, they found themselves back at Wing-san’s house so they could discuss their upcoming mission. They explained that they would be working with Hisoka and the new mystery woman Sirena, but they left out the more detailed parts about her powers and how they had to heal Hisoka. They did not mention that their target was the Phantom Troupe. They explained they would begin searching for their unnamed targets in the next week, and would likely be leaving Heaven’s Arena soon after. Gon did ask Wing one question, though:

“Ne, Wing-san. Could someone copy another person’s Hatsu if it has restrictions?”

“It depends on the restrictions and the one trying to copy it. It’s not totally unpossible, but it would be incredibly difficult and would likely be much weaker than the original.”

Gon nodded and didn’t say anything else about the subject, and Wing-san didn’t try to pry for more. They spent the rest of their time playing card games around the dining table and talking about nothing of particular importance but laughing often. Gon was really enjoying being back around the others, but it was getting late and Killua motioned that it was time to leave. They said their goodbyes and promised to visit again soon and not let so much time pass between visits again.

As they were walking the dark streets back to the hotel, he found his mind wandering back to the puzzle that was Sirena’s ability. _How was she able to perfectly replicate Kurapika’s hatsu?_

“Ne Killua, how do you think she was able to use Kurapika’s Judgement Chain?”

Killua put his hands behind his head and looked up at the dark night sky, considering Gon’s question. It had been bothering him all night too, and he answered the dark haired teen honestly:

“I don’t know. If we didn’t know of the restrictions Kurapika had set, I might not have thought about it that much. Surely she can’t use it without taking on the restrictions too?”

That had also been eating at Gon, but more than just that….

“How was she also able to use Bungee Gum?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“Isn’t that how she held us to the wall and the chairs? It was hard for me to notice at first, but it felt really familiar and it kept bothering me. It finally clicked though when you were slamming your chair against the floor and it wouldn’t break.”

Killua stopped dead in his tracks and gasped in surprise. “I can’t believe I didn’t realize!”

“Hmm, I guess Hisoka hasn’t ever used it on you directly before, but it felt just like the time we fought in the Arena.” 

_Damnit, why didn’t I notice she was copying Hisoka too?_ Killua was really annoyed by that, he had known the ability felt familiar but he couldn’t place it. _Shit, I’m really out of practice,_ he thought bitterly. 

After ensuring Gon would live from his near-death experience, Killua had set out to travel the world with Alluka. Over the last two years he had done strength training and practiced his nen regularly, but he hadn’t fought anyone powerful since the Ants. Not that he had minded. He had spent his whole life fighting, being tortured and beaten to the point he couldn’t even imagine what a _normal life_ was. It had been a lot more boring and unfulfilling than he had expected, and those thoughts made him feel extremely guilty, like he was taking his sisters company and freedom for granted. He had felt even more guilty at how happy he had been when Gon had asked him to go on this surprise vacation, but decided his desire to see Gon outweighed his negative feelings.

Killua shook off those thoughts, focusing on what was more important right now. “I don’t know how she can copy others, but one thing is for sure. She is dangerous.”

Gon clenched his fist. “Yeah.” 

Killua started walking again. “We should try to learn more about her powers. I’ll ask Hisoka while we’re gone, and you try to find out what you can from her; But don’t push if she seems to get angry.” 

Gon nodded. He would do anything he could to learn more about Sirena, would do anything he could if it meant keeping Killua safe. He didn’t think Hisoka or Sirena would hurt Killua, but he had a knot deep in his gut that he couldn’t shake. Something about the mission was screaming at him to run away, to grab Killua and run so far no one would ever find them. He knew he should probably tell Killua what was bothering him, but Gon was scared if he told him about it that Killua would insist they abandon the mission to ensure Gon’s safety. Gon knew it was selfish, and that he could be putting both of their lives at risk.

But Gon never could back down from a challenge. 

  
  


\---

In the early hours of the morning they were walking out of the hotel carrying all of the things they had brought with them and the spoils of their shopping. The air outside was crisp and cold and the frosty wind bit at their exposed hands. 

Killua was grumbling, he had wanted to stay in a little later and take advantage of room service for breakfast, but Gon was eager to leave. The atmosphere of the hotel at night was even worse than it had been during the day and it was creeping him out. Gon offered to pay for breakfast anywhere Killua wanted to go as long as they could get out of the eerie building.

They stopped by a little cafe on the walk to the arena. They grabbed a booth in the back and cozied up in the warm seats. Gon ordered them each a hot cocoa, the chocolate rich and delicious and a great way to warm their frozen hands. They ate breakfast in silence, relishing in each others’ company before they would have to part ways later today. Towards the end of their meal, Gon asked their waitress for a to-go menu so he could order something to bring back for Hisoka and Sirena. Killua rolled his eyes, saying the gesture would be lost on those two, but Gon insisted. 

On their way out, something small with cute packaging caught Gon’s eye by the register. On a whim, he bought it and stuffed it in his pocket before Killua could get back from the restroom. 

They arrived at the arena far earlier than they had planned to and decided that rather than try to kill time, they would just bite the bullet and face the dreaded two waiting for them upstairs. Zushi had lent them a spare pass so they could come and go from the 200th floor as they needed to while they were in town, so today there was no need to find a way to sneak in. The elevator ride up was agonizingly slow, and their stomachs sank as it ascended. There was no turning back now. 

They found the familiar room and hesitantly knocked on the door. No one answered, and Gon bit his lip as he looked at Killua. He knocked again, louder this time, and finally he heard shuffling and the jangling of the lock on the door before it violently swung open. 

It was Sirena that answered and she had clearly not been awake until the boys had knocked. She was clothed only in a short black robe made of silk, but she had tied it clumsily and it hung open precariously around her chest barely covering her well-endowed bust. Her hair was even more wild than it had been last night, the long brown waves tangled together in thick clumps. She looked truly frightening, but the worst part was that her half lidded eyes were shooting daggers at the teens. 

“You’re early.”

_Yep, she is definitely not a morning person._ Gon knew a lot about wild animals and older women and found that they had this thing in common: It was extremely risky to wake a sleeping one up. He swallowed hard and regretted their anticipation that had brought them here over an hour earlier than they were supposed to be, but it was too late.

“Sorry… we were already awake and figured it would be better to get here sooner rather than later… Um… we brought breakfast!” Not sure what else to say, Gon hoped that the offer of food would satiate the agitated woman. She closed her eyes and heavily sighed. She then stepped back from the door, allowing them access into the room. They stepped uneasily past her into the lion's den, and she closed and locked the door quietly behind them. 

The scene that awaited them inside was even more bizarre than they had expected. 

Sirena and Hisoka’s clothes from the night before were strewn around the room, tops and pants and shoes that had been carelessly discarded on the ground around the apartment. There were two wine glasses out and several empty bottles of different wines lined the counter. The oddest thing in the room though was the red haired man fast asleep on the bed. Clothed only in red satin boxers and laying face down on top of the comforter, his well defined muscles and pale skin were on open display. Gon and Killua had never seen the magician sleep, and it was like they were looking at an alien. A _softly snoring alien_ at that. 

Sirena started clearing the wine bottles off the counter and the sound of bottles clinking brought them out of their initial shock. The boys walked over to the kitchen and began setting out what they had brought from the restaurant. It was definitely more food than two people could eat, and she raised her eyebrows at the impressive display. 

Gon noticed her expression and offered his explanation, “I wasn’t sure what either of you would like… So I bought a lot of different options. There’s also coffee and juice, and I brought sugar and creamer in case you want that too.”

She rubbed her eyes sleepily and then scanned the options available. She took one of the styrofoam cups of coffee and added cream to it, then picked up a particularly tasty looking blueberry muffin. She started walking off towards the bathroom with her things mentioning something about needing to get ready. Before she could leave the kitchen, Killua cleared his throat.

“Uh, what about him?” He jerked a thumb over at Hisoka, who was still fast asleep. 

Her eyes narrowed and a dark smirk formed over her lips. “Oh, we had quite the eventful night.” She chuckled to herself and turned to leave, but called out before she closed and locked the bathroom door behind her. “You’d better wake him while I’m not in the room.” 

_Yea, she’s definitely dangerous_ Killua and Gon thought in unison.

Gon looked nervously at Killua, but Killua’s response was immediate. 

“Oh no, I’m not gonna be the one to wake that sleeping monster. You should do it, he at least can’t kill _you._ ” Killua emphasized the last part of his sentence dramatically and Gon hung his head in exaggerated defeat. Gon grabbed one of the coffees he had brought and added both cream and sugar. He wasn’t sure how Hisoka preferred his coffee, but he knew he would have to offer _something_ to Hisoka in order to distract him from his likely anger at being woken up. Gon figured sweeter was better than bitter first thing in the morning. 

Peace offering in hand, Gon hesitantly padded over to the bed. Hisoka was laying on his stomach with his face half turned up. Now within a few inches of the man, Gon could see that Hisoka had let his aura relax in his sleep, and his gruesome injuries were back. His crimson hair was relaxed and there was no face paint on his cheek. Gon thought it made the magician look surprisingly young, and he realized he had no clue how old the man was. He decided that even with his deformities, Hisoka looked more human right now than Gon had ever seen him. 

Gon reached out his empty hand and shook Hisoka’s shoulder gently. He called his name a few times, but he couldn’t detect a response other than his rhythmic breathing. After a few minutes, Gon shook Hisoka’s shoulder a little harder and called his name a little louder. He heard a grumble at that, but still nothing. Gon shook hard enough to almost turn the magician all the way over and yelled his name.

Golden yellow eyes flew open and a hand shot out and grabbed Gon by his shirt and yanked the teen closer, the man acting on instinct alone. Gon tensed up, and was glad he had put the lid back on the cup as he heard the hot coffee slosh precariously around. 

“Hisoka! It’s just me!” Gon raised his free hand in surrender.

Hisoka blinked a few times, crazed eyes slowing to look at the person in front of him. Soft amber eyes and dark black hair came in focus followed by caramel skin. He realized there was soft morning light filtering in behind the teen. 

Hisoka covered his face with the hand not holding on to Gon, took a deep breath, and after a moment yellow eyes peered out between his fingers to narrow in on his prey.

“What do you think you’re doing?” The magician was almost growling.

Gon was definitely glad he brought the coffee now. He shoved the cup towards Hisoka as he anxiously explained “Sorry! Sirena told us to wake you up so that’s what I was doing. I brought you a coffee!” Gon stretched the coffee closer to Hisoka, silently begging the magician to take it so he could be released. Gon also offered a soft “We brought breakfast too, if you want some…”

Hisoka glowered at the cup of mystery liquid before asking “She put you up to this? Did she make that coffee?” 

Gon was sweating nervously and a little confused as to why Hisoka was looking so detestedly at the cup. “She asked us to wake you up, but I brought the coffee. Someone at the restaurant we stopped at made it… oh, but I did add cream and sugar… did you want something else instead?”

Hisoka’s intense gaze remained fixed on Gon. Feeling the boy’s anxiety, he pulled him closer. Gon averted his gaze and looked up into the corner of the room. 

“Gon, why are you avoiding me? You really can’t keep a secret, can you?” Hisoka suspected the coffee really was contaminated, and that was why Gon was wanting to avoid eye contact. Such an earnest and straightforward person would never be comfortable resorting to using poisons to fight their battles. 

“Huh? I’m not keeping anything a secret. It’s just… um, your face…”

“What about my face?” The magician was confused.

“He’s talking about your scars, Sleeping Beauty. You’re not covering them up with nen anymore.” Killua came to Gon’s rescue since the dark haired boy had somehow lost his ability to speak coherent sentences. 

With that comment, Hisoka smirked. He looked up at Gon coyly “Oh, that’s all? You should have said something sooner~” 

Gon exhaled and hung his head, attempting to push the coffee towards Hisoka again. The man finally released Gon and accepted the cup of warm liquid. He brought it up and took a deep sip, and when he lowered it back down his normal features had returned. He flashed Gon a gleaming smile before he began to sit up in bed. “Thank you for the coffee, Gon~ It’s exactly how I like it.” 

“Um...you’re welcome…. I don’t know if you heard me earlier... but there’s breakfast too... if you want something....” Amber eyes were avoiding Hisoka again, desperately trying to look anywhere else but at the man’s lap now that he was sitting up. He had seen the magician’s _excitement_ once before when they had interrupted his bath on Greed Island, and apparently power _and_ waking up first thing in the morning were turn-ons for Hisoka. 

Hisoka again looked confused at the boy’s discomfort, and from the other side of the room Killua sighed, obviously annoyed as he rolled his eyes.

“Oi Hisoka, you’re practically naked. If you’re awake get dressed already.” 

Gon felt the blush rising to his cheeks and he focused harder on a speck of dust on the wall. Hisoka chuckled.

“Gomen, Gon~ I’ll get dressed right now~” Wicked amusement flickered in those golden eyes. Gon nodded and walked back towards Killua, trying to allow Hisoka privacy as he changed.

In a few minutes Hisoka was fully clothed and sauntering into the kitchen. He eyed the impressive spread on the counter, just realizing now he had slept for close to 12 hours and was starting to get hungry. He grabbed one of the containers that had a savory dish, not particularly caring what it contained. He ate quickly and quietly while the two boys were chatting over something uninteresting. Once he was done eating he finished his coffee and then discarded the plastic containers in the trash. He walked towards the door to leave, but was stopped by Gon.

“Hisoka?”

“Don’t worry, Gon~ I’m just going to go back to my room to shower and change. I’ll be back before our friend notices~”. He wasn’t stopping to explain himself anymore and didn’t care if the woman would be left waiting on him. He left the room without another word. 

Gon frowned. He knew something was off about the magician, but he couldn’t place what it was. He was sure it had something to do with Sirena, though.

\---

About 30 minutes later both Hisoka and the woman emerged back into the room. The food from earlier was gone and the room had been cleaned and the bed was neatly made. Gon had taken the opportunity presented by Sirena and Hisoka being preoccupied to run the leftovers out to the alley behind the arena and pass them out to homeless people huddled together on the cold ground. Once he had gotten back to the room, he had used his pent up anxious energy to tidy up in the room. Now they were all standing in the small kitchen, discussing their travel plans. 

“Alright, so Hisoka and Killua are taking an air ship to Kukuroo Mountain. They should be there later today, and Hisoka should be healed in 48 hours.” Sirena had taken charge of coordinating everyone's plans, and she was giving the rundown now. 

In the almost hour she had been getting ready she had completely transformed her appearance from earlier this morning and had reverted to the timelessly beautiful woman they had first seen. Today though she was dressed more comfortably: A soft white turtle-neck sweater was pulled over black leggings and she had layered a tan long coat over the sweater and completed her look with black velvet heels. Her chocolate hair was swept up into an effortlessly messy bun and random tendrils framed her delicate face. She wasn’t wearing heavy makeup today, only a clear lip gloss that gave her lips a dewy effect. 

Killua nodded. “Yea, then we are meeting back up with you and Gon. Are we meeting back here or somewhere else?”

The woman shook her head. “No, we won’t set up base here. Too many enemies and no lingering connections to the Spiders. We’ll go to Yorknew and try to pick up their trail from there.” 

Gon spoke up. “Yorknew? Aren’t they from Meteor City? Wouldn’t it be better to go there first?” 

The woman shook her head again. “No, it’s rare for them to go to their homeland. Also I would prefer not to fight on their home turf, if we can help it.” 

The teens nodded at that. Meteor City was a huge mystery, but it’s residents were famously known for their devotion to the protection of their own. It would be a problem if they were caught there trying to fight the troupe as that would put a target on their back from everyone in the city.

Sirena continued. “So then, we will all plan to meet in Yorknew City in 5 days. We’ll all exchange phone numbers here and then go to the airport.” 

\---

It was nearing 10 am when they arrived at the airport. Killua and Hisoka’s flight was departing first and they were rushing to make it on time before the gates closed. Killua had run ahead to buy their tickets, and now Hisoka, Sirena and Gon were standing in the waiting area near the gate. Killua eventually returned, handing Hisoka his ticket and starting to gather up his bags. They were just about to depart when Gon grabbed Killua by the sleeve of his shirt and drew him into a hug. He muttered quietly for only Killua to hear,

“Be safe, and I’ll see you soon.”

Killua’s hands were filled with bags so he couldn’t return the gesture, but he nodded. Gon released him quickly, not wanting to hold him back and keep him from the flight. The magician smirked at the dark haired teen.

“No hug good-bye for me, Gon~?”

Gon furrowed his eyebrows and stuck his tongue out at the man’s jest. Hisoka chuckled quietly and began crossing through the gate when Gon suddenly remember something:

“Oh, Hisoka! I almost forgot, here! I thought you might like it.” 

The teen tossed something up at Hisoka, and a pale hand reached out to easily catch it. He put it in his pocket without looking and hurried to make it through the gate before it closed.The boy was waving and smiling through the huge windows of the airport as Killua and Hisoka boarded their ship.

Once they were up in the air, Hisoka pulled the small item out of his pocket and stared down it. The box was covered in a uniquely cute art style, bright pink colors with card suits and a smiling cartoon face looking up at him. He opened it to reveal the candy inside, and he smiled as he popped a piece in his mouth. He unfurled the wrapper delicately in his hand to read the familiar words:

_Bungee Gum._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I loved writing the fluff moments between Gon and the others, especially that first moment with Killua :’) I just love those two together so much.


	6. Wager

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two transmuters take a trip together and all goes about as expected

Hisoka and Killua had been settled on the airship for over an hour now and still had several left to go. 

Not wanting to attract more attention than necessary, they had booked seats in a small private compartment where they were sitting across from each other in a make-shift booth with a table between them. Killua was sitting quietly, not much to do on the long flight besides stare out the window at the passing clouds. He had told Gon he would try to ask Hisoka about Sirena’s nen capabilities, but even sitting casually near him, Hisoka was intimidating. He had never had a casual conversation with the man before, and he wasn’t sure how to start one now after so much silence had already passed. Killua tried many times to question him, but every time he looked at the red haired magician he couldn’t quite find the words and ended up only awkwardly readjusting in his seat to stare back out the window. 

Hisoka was nonchalantly blowing bubbles with a piece of chewing gum, his hands skillfully shuffling through his deck of cards after his latest card tower attempt had fallen when there had been sudden turbulence. Hisoka loathed being bored, and he had noticed the young haired assassin eyeing him frequently. After a while he decided if his prey wasn’t going to come to him, then he would be more than happy to initiate the conversation.

“Cat got your tongue~?” 

Killua furrowed his eyebrows at the sudden question. “Huh?”

“You’ve been glancing at me every 5 seconds the entire time we’ve been in the air~”

“Well excuse me, it’s not everyday I sit casually with a murderous magician.” Killua huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and squeezing his eyes shut in annoyance; but he was mostly annoyed at himself for not taking the bait and asking the question he had been thinking about the whole trip. 

Hisoka chuckled. He loved watching his prey squirm under his gaze. “Well, how about a game to pass the time then~?”

Killua slowly opened one blue eye to peer at the man. “What kind of game?”

“A card game, of course. But we should make it interesting~” Hisoka mentally thanked Gon for giving him this idea. The dark haired teen had innocently mentioned when they were on Greed Island preparing for the game against Razor that Killua had once shown an unhealthy addiction to gambling. Of course Gon hadn’t known that Hisoka would now be using that piece of information against Killua. 

And, right on queue, Killua’s curiosity was piqued. “Interesting how?” Eager blue eyes were now fully open and narrowing on Hisoka. 

“We’ll play Blackjack. I’ll be the House. Each round the winner gets to ask the loser anything they want and the loser has to answer. How about it~?”

Killua adjusted in his seat so he could lean closer to the table and replied with a sharp smile “Okay.”

Hisoka hummed as he shuffled the deck and swiftly dealt the cards, one face up and one faced down to Killua and then two for himself. 

Killua subtly lifted and glanced at his card that was face down. 8 of spades. His second card was a 5 of hearts. “Hit me.”

Hisoka sent another card his way. Killua lifted it up: A 10 of clubs. _Shit._ “Bust” he bit the word out. 

Hisoka revealed his cards, a Queen of hearts and a King of spades. He smirked.

“Well then, looks like I get to ask the first question~”

“Yea, whatever. Ask away.” 

“What really happened when you two were chasing after the Ants?” 

Killua furrowed his eyebrows. “How am I supposed to answer that? It’s a long story.” 

Hisoka picked up the cards and began shuffling them. “We have no shortage of time~”

Killua sighed. He didn’t really want to tell Hisoka everything that had happened since the magician would probably use it against them. He thought about skimming over the worse parts, but he also knew that if Hisoka wasn’t satisfied with his answer, he would probably try to get Gon to tell him the rest. Killua wasn’t about to let that happen, so he picked the lesser of two evils. 

He started telling the story of everything that had happened after their match with Razor on Greed Island. There was so much to cover: the fight with the bombers, meeting Kite, going into NGL, Kite’s death, Netero’s challenge and their training to fight Knuckle and Shoot, recovering Kite’s lifeless body, and then the infamous night they had infiltrated the castle. Killua didn’t spare any details, even going into the grimmer points about Gon losing himself in his rage and despair and how that had led him to set the covenant and restriction to get all the nen he would ever have his whole life in one night. Killua hated telling that part of the story because it was still as raw and gut wrenching as it had been two years ago; But he had cried enough tears over what had happened, and he didn’t break down now. 

Hisoka was a surprisingly good listener, Killua found. He intently listened to the story, asking simple questions or nodding here and there to clarify or show interest in different pieces. Sometime in the middle of the story, Hisoka caught a waitress as she was walking by and ordered a scotch. Hisoka sipped his drink as Killua finished the lengthy tale, “So, there you go. That’s what happened.”

“So that is why Gon can no longer use nen?”

Killua stiffened at the question, not knowing how to answer. Hisoka guessed he was correct by watching the teens' response. 

“Has he looked for a way to restore it?” Hisoka assumed Gon would have spent the last two years searching every inch of the world to get his ability back, but maybe the teen hadn’t considered it a possibility. 

Killua shrugged. “I don’t know. I think Ging had mentioned something to Gon about the possibility early on, but Gon never told me if he explored that option. I assume he did and it was a dead end. That would be something Ging would do.” 

“You didn’t search with him?” 

“Huh? I figured Illumi would have told you. Gon and I separated after he was healed and he’s been back at home for the last 2 years while I went traveling with Alluka.” 

That definitely surprised Hisoka. He couldn’t picture the two teens willingly separating for more than a day, let alone two whole years. He was about to ask another question, but Killua suddenly held his hand up. 

“I’ve answered plenty of your questions, and we only played one round. If you want to ask anymore, you’ll have to beat me in another round.” 

Hisoka looked coyly at Killua “And here I thought you had forgotten about the game~”

“I didn’t, but I was being generous. I won’t be again.” 

Hisoka wondered about that. _Generous, huh?_ It had seemed too good that the white haired teen had willingly answered all of his questions and had been very thorough in his explanation. He decided to put the thought in his back pocket to be explored later and began humming and shuffling the cards again. He dealt the cards and then waited for Killua to inspect his hand.

Killua looked at his cards. A 6 of diamonds and a Jack of hearts. It was a risky gamble, but… “Hit me.”

Hisoka slid another card across the smooth table. Killua lifted it. A 9 of spades. _Damnit!_

“Bust again.” Killua was really annoyed now. 

Amused yellow eyes locked onto the boy. Though he didn’t need to, he flipped his cards over and revealed his hand. A jack of diamonds and 9 of hearts.

“Since you were _so generous,_ the house will concede this round and you can ask me a question. We prefer not to be in debt to anyone~

Killua openly rolled his eyes at that, but he wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to ask Hisoka a question, not when they were quickly running out of time.

“Fine then. What happened between you and Sirena last night?”

A dark smile pulled on Hisoka’s face, but there was no amusement twinkling in his golden eyes anymore. Killua thought he had maybe hit a sore spot, but Hisoka responded:

“You should have asked a question with a more interesting answer. You do know what a man and a woman do behind closed doors, don’t you~?” Hisoka purred the words, and they elicited the desired effect he was after.

Killua blushed deeply and had to turn his head away. A loud _tsk_ sound escaped his lips as he angrily declared, “You can’t answer a question with another question!” 

Hisoka chuckled, a low resonate sound that was equal parts seductive and malicious, “But you knew the answer to my question, therefore it qualified as an answer.”

Killua’s eyes blackened, frustrated by Hisoka’s aggravating ability to twist every situation to fit to his liking, like he could force the entire world to bend to his will if only he chose to. 

“Whatever, deny it if you want to. But if you were really just doing stupid adult things, why were you passed out without your nen this morning?”

“Ah ah, you’ve already asked a question. If you want to ask another you’ll have to beat me in another round, right? The house won’t be generous again~”

_Tsk_ , _this guy really gets on my nerves._ Killua was close to seething, and the magician's nonchalant nature was not helping. The red haired man was absent mindedly shuffling the cards, his fingers running gracefully over the deck as he elegantly cut and restacked it in a variety of ways. He was trying to pull off a particularly complex trick when the fingers on his right hand seemed to betray him, causing him to mess up. _Oh, so his fake hand doesn’t work perfectly_. Killua had been wondering how Hisoka managed to replicate his fingers with nen, when it suddenly dawned on him:

“Hey! Have you been cheating?!” 

Hisoka feigned innocence “Me, cheating? I would never dream of it~”

Killua pointed an accusing finger at the deck of cards. “Yea right, you could change the surface of the cards easily to win!” 

Hisoka’s yellow gold eyes were glittering with mischief as he replied, “Are you so upset about losing that you would accuse me of cheating~?” 

“Tsk, whatever. If you’re not cheating then let me deal the next round.” 

“Hai, Hai.” Hisoka willingly passed the deck over to Killua.

Killua dealt the cards, though admittedly not as smoothly as Hisoka had. Killua looked at his cards. A 7 of hearts and a 3 of spades. He drew another card and anxiously peered at it. An ace of spades stared back at him. He put the card back down, his face unmoving. 

Hisoka’s eyes were filled with mirth as he said, “I’ll stay~” he flipped his cards over, revealing a 10 of hearts and 9 of clubs.

Now it was Killua’s turn to smirk. He flipped over his cards and showed his winning hand. “My turn for a question then.”

Hisoka chuckled, “so it would seem~”

“What do you know about Sirena’s nen ability? How was she able to copy Judgement Chain?” 

“That’s two questions~”

Killua frowned. “Fine, what do you know about her abilities?”

“Hmmm, not much unfortunately. I’ve heard rumors but never had the pleasure to confirm them for myself~”

“You said you watched her fight before, didn’t she use her ability then?” 

Hisoka decided to afford the young assassin this extra question. “Yes, I watched her fight but it was painfully dull. It seems she only uses her true powers against her _real prey_.”

“Real prey?” Killua was confused, as Hisoka was clearly insinuating something by that but what exactly the young assassin wasn’t sure. 

“That’s a third question~”

“Forget the game! We need to know what we’re up against so spill everything you know about her.” Killua was done messing around and hated the cat and mouse game he was playing with Hisoka. 

“A pity, I do so love games…..But fine, what do you want to know?” A rare instance, Hisoka looked somewhat serious. 

“You’ve hinted at it twice now, something about her ‘other fans’ and now her ‘real prey’, what are you talking about?”

Hisoka swirled his glass of scotch around as he replied, “Hmm, how to explain that. Our beautiful friend is more than just a pretty face, as it turns out, she’s also apparently quite the gifted singer. But she only performs at underground clubs.”

“Okay, so? Who’s her real prey?” Blue eyes narrowed on Hisoka, trying to understand what the magician was dancing around. 

“She has peculiar tastes, from what I hear. Mostly murderers or other hard-core criminals, and they’re always men. Something about vengeance, I presume.”

“So you’re saying she kills them?” 

A wicked smile spread over Hisoka’s face. “Probably, but only after she’s had her fun with them~” Hisoka let out a noise that was between a hum and moan, and Killua didn’t need to ask what he meant by _fun with them_. 

“Okay, so she’s a maneater. Well, I had already figured as much from the way she interacted with you.” The young assassin didn’t find satisfaction in being right, but he nodded as his suspicions were confirmed. 

“It does appear so~” 

“Well, if you don’t know much about her abilities do you at least know how she copied yours?”

Yellow eyes sharpened on Killua. “You noticed that too, did you?”

“Yea, Gon and I both. We don’t know how she can do it though.”

“How, indeed~?” Hisoka was about to say more when suddenly they were interrupted, an attendant on the PA system explaining they would soon make their descent to land at the airport. Hisoka downed the rest of his drink and put the deck of cards back in his pocket. Killua wanted to pick up where they left off, but it didn’t seem like the man would say anything else. Their conversation was over.

\---

Hisoka and Killua were walking out of the airport when Killua reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He dialed a number and pressed the green ‘call’ button. Almost immediately it was answered.

“Killua-sama, we are parked outside the entrance.” 

“Alright, we’ll be out in a minute. Thanks, Canary.” Killua had grown accustomed to Canary’s formalities, and he respected her wish to speak only about business. 

“Anytime.”

He clicked the ‘end call’ button and stuffed his phone back into his pocket. Hisoka and Killua crossed through the doors of the entrance and walked outside into the sunshine of the late afternoon, immediately spotting the black town car waiting for them. Canary was standing at attention by the trunk, and as they approached she reached out for some of their luggage to store it away. Once they were all settled in, the car pulled out of the parking lot as they sped towards the one place Killua dreaded visiting. 

Before long the mountainside came into view, followed by the massive gates surrounding the Zoldyck estate. Killua was tense. 

Hisoka had seen the Gates of Hell before, but that didn’t make it any less impressive. The car pulled up in front of the massive entrance and the engine shut off. This was where they got off. 

Killua opened the door to exit, and Hisoka followed his lead. The sun was beginning to set behind them, and Killua looked over at the magician as he asked, “Do I need to explain how to open the gates or has Illumi already told you?” 

“I’m afraid your dearest brother didn’t tell me how to enter, he always did hate mixing business with pleasure~”

“Whatever, well if we are going to go any further you have to open the gate,” He jerked his head towards the mighty wall. 

Hisoka chuckled as he responded, “So much for the famous Zoldyck hospitality~” 

Killua shrugged, unaffected by the taunt. 

Hisoka stalked up the mighty gate, and then released his fierce aura around him. He placed his hands on the door, and began to push. Killua’s eyes widened as Hisoka opened the gate all the way to the 7th ring without even breaking a sweat. Killua scowled at the magician’s back, _tsk, of course he could open all the gates._

Hisoka turned around with smug satisfaction, “Shall we, then~?”

Sometime later they were settled in at the Butler’s mansion. Killua didn’t know how his parents would respond to his sudden request so he didn’t want to push their luck by simply bringing Hisoka into the family home without telling anyone. Killua found one of the butlers after dinner and asked if he knew which family members were home right now. Apparently his Father and Grandpa Zeno were out on a job, Illumi and Kalluto had not been home in a while, and the only immediate family members home were his Mother, Milluki, and Alluka. _Like hell I’m talking to Mom about this._

Killua was reading something on his phone with a smile when Hisoka came and found him. Upon the magician's entrance, Killua hurriedly typed something on his phone and then put it in his pocket as his smile vanished. Hisoka smirked at the not-so subtle teen before saying,

“Well~?” 

“My Father isn’t at home right now but he should be back within the next day. We won’t do anything until he approves.” 

“Does this mean I get to meet Daddy Dearest~?” Hisoka crooned, his voice almost sing-song.

Killua cringed at Hisoka’s comment. “Probably.”

“Mmmm, how exciting. I had always thought it would be Illumi introducing me to your parents, though~”

Killua wrinkled his nose and furrowed his eyebrows at the clearly disturbed man in front of him. “Yea well, it probably won’t be as fun as you’re imagining. You won’t get to fight him, and you’ll be lucky if he says one word to you.” 

Hisoka sighed dreamily. “One can only hope~” and then he turned to leave, heading towards the room he would be staying in the next few days.

Killua called after him, “Oi, don’t go wandering off tonight. You might have gotten through the gate but that doesn’t mean you’re safe.”

Hisoka didn’t turn around but chuckled softly in response. The door closed behind him.

\---

The next day, Killua headed into the main house and spent time with Alluka. In reality it had only been a few days since he had last seen his sister, but he still missed her. He quickly caught her up to speed on how his trip had gone, and how he would be needing her help. 

Alluka was pouting. “Onii-chan, you only came home to use my powers.” 

Killua had enough shame to look sheepishly at her before replying, “I know, but I really need your help. Besides, I wasn’t supposed to be home for a week or two anyway, so think of it as a bonus visit.” 

Alluka pouted more, but then puffed “Okay, I’ll help you. But you have to spend today playing games with me!”

Killua smiled tenderly at his sister. She had really come into her own over the last few years, and he was immensely proud of her for how far she had come. 

“Of course, Onii-chan would do anything for you.” 

Alluka’s face went mushy as she grinned back at her doting brother. Just as he promised, they spent the rest of the day playing various board games before switching to a new video game Alluka had recently gotten. It was getting into the early evening when a butler made him aware that his Father had returned and had summoned Killua to his room. Killua made sure Alluka was fully entranced with her game before standing to leave. He walked swiftly and silently through the house before finally he stood outside the door. He knocked once, and heard his Father’s voice call back: “Come in.”

Killua hesitantly entered his Father’s room. Sharp cat-like eyes met his as his Father spoke again. “Sit.” 

Killua walked the few steps to the chair in the middle of the dimly-lit room and did as he was told. 

“Why have you brought that man here?” Silva never beat around the bush, was always direct in his way of speaking that was intimating to most. Killua had grown used to it. 

Determined blue eyes stared back at his Father. “He’s helping me with a mission, and is paying me to ask Nanika to heal injuries he got in a bad fight.”

“A fight with who?” Silva rarely asked questions, so this surprised Killua momentarily. 

“The Head of the Spiders.”

Silva’s eyes grew ice cold. “I told all of you to stay away from them.”

Killua didn’t waver in his determination, “Yea, well it seems like Illumi and Kalluto didn’t get that message either.” This was knowledge he had been saving to use a trump card in this situation. He knew all of his family was aware of what Kalluto and Illumi were doing and were purposely keeping it secret from Killua. He didn’t really care what they did, but he was annoyed that Illumi had probably told his family to get it secret on purpose to keep him from hunting down the Troupe. 

“What is your mission, then?” Silva didn’t react to the truth bomb Killua had just dropped, and that irked the white haired teen a little bit. He had always hoped to catch his Father off guard, but had never succeeded.

“Exterminate the Spiders.”

Silva coldly stared at him for a long minute before he responded, “Just you two?”

Killua shook his head. “No, there are 4 of us. Though one can’t use nen.” 

“Those aren’t good odds,” Silva said firmly. 

“Yea, well that’s just right now. If I run into Illumi and Kalluto I’ll ask for their help, too.” Killua detested that he would have to resort to that, but he had already resigned himself to the fact that they would need all the good fighters they could get.

“If you’re willing to ask for help, very well then. But be careful.” Silva telling Killua to be careful was as close to a regular parent saying ‘I love you’ as the older assassin would get. 

Killua responded by giving him a thumbs-up before saying “So, we need to heal him by the end of the day tomorrow so we can meet back up with the others on time.” 

Silva nodded. “You’ll bring him into the house and have Nanika heal him here. Have one of the butlers heavily sedate him before bringing him.” 

Killua stood up to leave. “Got it.” He was almost out of the door when his Father spoke his name again.

“Killua.”

“Yea?” Killua turned his head slightly over his shoulder so one blue eye met Silva’s gaze.

“Be careful with the Leader. He can steal other’s nen abilities.”

“I know. We will be,’ and with that, Killua walked out of the room. 

\---

The next morning Killua was eating breakfast in the Butler’s kitchen when Hisoka came sauntering in. 

“So, when are we going to get started~?” 

Killua had told Hisoka the night before that his Father had approved, but hadn’t yet told him of the condition he had set. He pushed a glass of water and two pills over the counter towards the magician. He eyed them suspiciously. 

“We’ll get started right away, but my Father’s one condition was that you had to be knocked out. So as soon as you take those, we’ll get started.” 

Hisoka’s aura lashed out violently, malicious wisps slashing out and prickling Killua’s skin like needles. The man’s sharp yellow eyes were glowering at the pills and his facial expression twisted into one of anger and disgust. 

“If I have to be knocked out, I would prefer to do it the old fashioned way instead of using that method.” His tone was sharp and lethal.

Killua scowled at him, raising his ten defenses around him to stop the prickling of the magician’s aura. “You really are crazy.” 

Hisoka chuckled wickedly. “Maybe so~ But I won’t even fight back. You’ll never get another chance like this, you know~”

Ocean blue eyes narrowed on Hisoka. “Fine, but you’ll wish you had just shut up and taken the easy way out.” Killua activated his ren, his white aura splashing out around him like a strong, serene river. He began to turn it into electricity, and the air crackled around him. Killua’s white hair spiked out wildly from the electricity as he started channeling his aura into his fist.

Without any warning, He launched himself at the red haired man with God’s Speed, bringing his fist squarely into Hisoka's chin with astounding strength. He swore he heard a faint moan as Hisoka fell to the ground, out cold. 

\---

Hisoka was blinking as he started to come to. As he regained his consciousness, he suddenly became aware of his body, and he flexed the muscles of his fingers and leg that he hadn’t felt in over two years. He lifted his hand to stare at it as he flexed and unflexed the muscles. He inhaled deeply, reveling in the feeling of being complete in his flesh again. He lapped out his tongue and licked his repaired lips, used his nose to inhale again and smell the world around him without the undertone of burnt flesh. _It’s far more exquisite than I remember._

He was extremely eager to put his body to the test and fight again without any annoying limits holding him back. The magician was going to start the hunt for his first target, when he noticed the white haired assassin sitting in the corner of the room casually reading a magazine. 

“Oh, you’re finally awake” Killua didn’t look up from his magazine as he spoke. 

Hisoka smiled sharply as he sat up, not able to contain his excitement. “Yes, and better than ever thanks to you~”

“That’s nice. Well, now that you’re up, can you get ready? We need to leave.” Killua folded the magazine shut and stood up to walk to the door. 

Hisoka raised an eyebrow at the teen.”We’re going so soon? We don’t have to leave until tomorrow, right? Are you that eager to get back your lover~?”

Killua whipped his head around at that, blood rushing to his face to turn it a deep scarlet. “Gon’s not my lover!” 

Hisoka laughed smugly. “Then why so eager to rush back to his side~?”

Killua scowled furiously, but knew he had the upper hand. He took a breath before responding. 

“It’s not that I’m eager, we just don’t have as much time as you think we do. I healed you yesterday.” 

Hisoka blinked, and turned to look at the window. Sure enough, early morning sunlight was lightly shining through the curtain. 

Hisoka brought one hand up to cover his face as he started to laugh. The man’s laughter was dark and villainous and it shook his whole body with eerie trembles as he struggled to retain it. He then inhaled and hummed out a deep and primal noise that sent shivers up Killua’s spine. The magician brought the hand covering his face down to claw at his arm as if he was desperately trying to calm himself down as he spoke, 

  
“ _Why must forbidden fruit be so tantalizing~_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay I finally finished this chapter! This was really fun to write since we don't get to see much of Killua and Hisoka 1x1 in the anime or manga, but I did struggle writing Silva and Canary, and that's why you don't see much of the other Zoldycks for now. I did want to mention a few other things though:
> 
> -The card suits and numbers dealt to each character were deliberate. Do with that information what you would like.  
> -I started a twitter specifically for this account to post when I post new chapters and other inspo things I find. if you want to follow it's @KereinaK
> 
> As always, I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading. ♥


	7. Kindling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirena and Gon arrive in York New City, and we see a glimpse of her past.

After Hisoka and Killua departed for Kukuroo Mountain, Gon and Sirena boarded their flight to York New City. There were apparently a lot of major business meetings happening in York New City at this time of year, and their flight was packed with people traveling to the city for work. With so many people onboard they weren’t able to secure a private compartment and instead found a few plush armchairs in one of the lounges to claim as their own. 

Sirena was a quiet companion and didn’t speak much to Gon besides to answer his questions about their flight. They only time her calm demeanor had faltered was when they entered the lounge and found their seats, Gon noticed several of the businessmen sitting at the bar eyeing her lecherously from where they sat; But if they were so unlucky as to actually catch her gaze she would scowl and shoot back daggers with her lethal hazel eyes, offering only a clear warning: _Stay away._

Since it didn’t seem like Sirena was interested in having a conversation, Gon quickly found himself yawning and growing drowsy, the excitement from earlier this morning and his lack of sleep in the creepy hotel catching up to him. He curled up and cozied into the chair and closed his eyes. He dozed off for the rest of the flight until he was awoken by an attendant at the lounge bar who called out that they would be arriving soon and it would be the last call for drinks. Gon yawned and stretched as he woke up, rubbing his bleary eyes as he looked for Sirena.

The woman was sitting across from him in her chair, not having moved since Gon first fell asleep. The only thing that had changed was that now she had earphones in and was apparently lost in the music as she stared dreamily out the window at the clouds, humming softly and lightly tapping her manicured nails rhythmically on the arm of the chair. Her humming voice was melodious and pleasant to the ear, and Gon was sad that the flight was coming to an end and he had only caught the final song in her private concert. 

Once they landed and departed the airport, Sirena arranged for a taxi to pick them up. She had just told the driver the address when Gon finally turned to speak to her, “So, where are we going?”

She settled down in her seat and smoothed her sweater under her seatbelt. “I found an apartment for us to stay in while we’re here. I’ll have to sign some paperwork once we get there, and then we’ll go out and get some supplies before the others get back.”

Gon tilted his head slightly as he questioned her, “Supplies?”

“Food, emergency medical supplies, other essential items. Also, you probably didn’t bring a lot of clothes right? We’ll likely be here for a while so we’ll want to get spare stuff like that just in case.” 

Gon smiled sheepishly, “I hadn’t thought about that, but you’re right!” 

Sirena smirked and turned to stare out the window at the buildings speeding by. “Men never do,” she muttered quietly. 

Gon’s face scrunched in confusion, but he decided not to push her on the comment. He also turned to look out the window for the rest of the ride. 

\---

The sun was just starting to set as they finally returned from a long day of running errands. Gon flopped on one of the couches in their new living quarters and pulled out his phone to check his messages as he thought about their first day in the city. 

The first thing they did was finalize the paperwork for the apartment Sirena had mentioned earlier. The building they were staying in was a smaller one compared to the towering skyscrapers littered throughout Yorknew City, and it only housed 20 apartments total. The number had surprised Gon when he first heard since the building was still by no means small, but once they entered the apartment he understood why.

Apartment was a poor word to describe their living arrangement. It was actually closer to a maisonette with 5 bedrooms total. Gon had starred in wide eyed amazement when they first walked in, taking in the impressive layout. The first floor was a huge open floor plan set-up: A massive kitchen, living area, and dining space all modernly decorated and seamlessly melded into each other. Floor to ceiling windows lined the back wall, and a set of french doors nestled among them that led out to a small terrace with patio furniture and a firepit. The living area also had vaulted ceilings with crown moldings that accommodated the exposed loft of the second floor and the wrought-iron spiral staircase that led up there. Skylight windows on the ceiling allowed more natural sunlight to filter in, an added perk of being on the top floor of the building.

Gon was typing out a message to Killua to let him know how his day had been:

_[We made it to York New safely and are at the place we’ll be staying. It’s amazing, wait until you see it! How’s your trip going? Tell Alluka I said Hi and ‘thank you’ for helping us. I owe her big time, too!]_

Gon had just hit ‘send’ when he heard a knock and the door and got up to answer it. A kid about his age was waiting on the other side with the takeout they had ordered, and Gon offered the other teen a genuine smile as he thanked him and paid for their dinner. 

“Dinner’s here,” Gon called out as he was carrying the bags into the kitchen. Within a minute Sirena appeared from the bedroom she had claimed and walked over to where Gon was unpacking everything. Over the course of the day she had opened up to Gon and softened her hardened exterior a little bit, and he no longer found her as intimidating as before. While the earlier tension between them was gone, she was still mostly mystery to him. 

“I could have cooked dinner, you know,” Gon said as he handed Sirena the container with her dinner. They had spent an hour of their day in a grocery store stocking up, and Gon had gotten excited thinking he would be able to make dinner. During his last two years on Whale Island, he had asked Mito-san to teach him so he could be more helpful around the house. Gon had actually gotten really good at cooking, so he was disappointed when Sirena said they wouldn’t cook tonight but would order takeout instead.

“And burn down the kitchen on the first night? I don’t think so,” she replied half teasingly, but her focus was on the food in front of her. They had ordered from a small italian restaurant and she was already digging in, twirling her fork around to scoop pasta into her mouth. 

“I wouldn’t burn anything down! I really know how to cook,” Gon said as he pouted before taking a bite of his own dinner. They were hovering over the island countertop to eat, both too hungry to bother moving over to the dining table.

Sirena considered him as she swallowed her bite, then replied “Fine, fine. Cooking will be your job while we’re here then.”

Gon triumphantly declared “Okay!”, before he stopped and tilted his head towards her, inquisitive amber eyes studying her. “What about you Sirena-san, do you know how to cook?” 

The woman grabbed a nearby bottle of water and took a sip before responding, “Sure I know how. I just find it a really tedious task, so I only do it when I feel like it or for someone special.” 

Gon took another bite and chewed thoughtfully at her answer. He was learning more about her, bit by bit, but he still hadn’t found the right time to ask about her motives or powers. She seemed relaxed right now, and Gon thought maybe this would be the best opportunity. Throwing caution to the wind, he asked her another question.

“Sirena-san, what makes you mad?” 

Sharp hazel eyes peered at him as she swallowed the piece of garlic bread she had just bitten into. “Why do you want to know?” 

“My aunt Mito-san says if you really want to know someone, you should find out what makes them mad. I want to know more about you if we’re going to be working together, and why you’re after the troupe.” 

“You’ve met them, haven’t you? What do you think of them?” She posed the question to Gon as she took another bite of pasta. 

Gon stared down at the counter as he thought about that. He remembered his encounter with the Spiders the last time he was in York New City, and how he thought they were cold blooded monsters. He had been furious to find out they would shed tears when one of their own were killed, even though they were also responsible for the deaths of so many. Gon hated hypocrites and those who treated others unfairly, and that’s exactly what the troupe was. 

“They murder countless people but will grieve one of their own. They piss me off,” Gon was never good at concealing his anger, and even now his fist was clenched tight as he spit out the words. 

Sirena took another drink of her water, “If you think that, then our sources of anger at them are similar. I could look the other way if they murdered other criminals, but they’ve sent too many innocents to the afterlife as well. You want to know what makes me mad? When someone who is good is killed before their time, their life and all their choices ripped away from them prematurely.”

Gon nodded as he looked back down at his dinner, suddenly not very hungry. He covered the aluminum container and pushed it away. “Sirena-san, can I ask you another question?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Why do you want to work with Hisoka? He’s worked with the troupe in the past and has killed people too,” Gon said as his amber eyes blazed. Gon could respect Hisoka’s power and that he had occasionally helped them, but he could never see him as a friend like he did Killua. Killua had been born and raised an assassin, but he didn’t find enjoyment in killing others and left that life behind. Hisoka on the other hand killed people for fun, even going so far as to set up a powerful opponent just to gain more ecstasy when he landed the final blow. 

Sirena sighed as she placed her elbow on the counter and rested her head in her hand. “I don’t like having to rely on him, but I can move past it for the sake of the bigger picture. Hisoka has killed people yes, but he prefers to fight those who are capable of putting up a fight. He doesn’t find joy in cutting down those who are too weak to defend themselves.” 

“Still, killing people is wrong,” Gon muttered as he stared at the cold marble countertop.

“Whether killing is right or wrong isn’t for humans to pass judgement. Have you never killed anyone before?”

Gon paused before answering. It wasn’t something he liked to think about, and it felt like a punch to the gut as he spoke, “Once, I allowed myself to be consumed by rage and killed someone who murdered someone I cared about; But that was a mistake. I lost everything because of it and felt more empty than I ever have.” 

There was a long moment of silence after he spoke, his words hanging heavy in the air and weighing hard down on him. He had talked about this with the therapist he was seeing back on Dolle Harbor, but in the safety of the office he had been able to almost disassociate while telling the story. It wasn’t that he regretted killing Pitou in the sense of taking its life, the ant had killed hundreds and planned to kill millions if they weren’t stopped. What Gon really regretted was losing himself to his rage and turning a cold shoulder to Killua, saying hurtful things to him and causing a riff in their relationship. He could never forgive himself for that, and speaking out loud what he had done felt like the whole world might collapse down on his shoulders and push him down, down, down, so far down that he would be forced into the underworld where he thought he belonged. 

Sirena reached out and placed her hand gently on Gon’s shoulder. The gesture was so kind, it seemed out of place coming from the woman who had mostly only shown a hard exterior. It felt comforting in that moment, and Gon no longer felt like Atlas trying to keep the world from crushing him. He took a deep breath as Sirena spoke.

“Sometimes killing is necessary to rid the world of evil. If the person killed your friend in cold blood, then you dealt the equal punishment to them. Though I do agree, you shouldn’t have done it. Like I said, passing judgement should be for the Gods to decide.”

While Gon had grown up respectful of Mito-san and his great-Grandma’s religious beliefs, he had never thought about it much or considered himself a religious person. He was curious about why someone who had the strength to make something happen would want to leave it up to prayers and the will of the Gods, so he asked her, “If you think that, why are you set on killing the troupe? Shouldn’t you leave it to the Gods?”

“I am.”

Gon looked at her with wide eyes as any kindness she had on her face before melted off, replaced by the sharp and wicked smile and features she had worn when they first met. Her aura lashed out like a wildfire, the white-hot flames of her nen licking Gon’s skin and leaving it scorching. Gon gritted his teeth, trying to bear the pain, but he felt himself growing weak quickly. Noticing his discomfort, she wrangled her aura back to her body and quelled it as she looked questioning at him.

“Why do you not defend yourself? It’s just as Hisoka said, you haven’t used your aura this whole time.”

Gon worked to catch his breath as the pain began to subside. Sweat trickled down his forehead as he said, “I can’t use nen anymore.” 

_“What?”_ Sirena breathed through clenched teeth. She had thought the boy odd not to be using his aura and that Hisoka had been taunting him by commenting on it to get a reaction out of him. But to hear he couldn’t use nen and had insisted on coming on this trip? _Was he insane?_

“To kill the one who murdered my friend I set a covenant and restriction that gave me the nen and strength I would have spent years training to get all in one night. After that, I couldn’t see or sense my own aura anymore,” Gon spoke quietly, not making eye contact with Sirena. 

“Then why did you insist on coming? You don’t stand a chance against even the weakest nen users, let alone the troupe!” 

Gon found the will to look her square in the eyes as he replied, “I might not be able to use nen, but I’m not weak. I’ve spent the last two years training constantly.” 

“Training won’t do you any good against the troupe if you can’t defend against nen!” 

“Still, I have to do this,” Gon said with resolve so firm it could have materialized in the air between them.

She glared furiously at him for a long moment, thinking about why on earth this boy would risk his life like this. She couldn’t understand why men always wanted to fight hopeless battles, why they insisted on puffing out their chest and risking death just to prove they weren’t weak; but it was too late, he was already here and bound to Hisoka. If she wanted Hisoka’s help, the boy would have to stay too. She took several deep breaths to calm herself down and think rationally through this. _The boy can’t use nen, but he still needs to be strong enough to defend himself should they find themselves in a fight. The Troupe doesn’t know he can’t use nen, so he just might be able to create an opening for himself to escape if he is clever enough to keep his weakness hidden._

“Fine, but you’ll need to keep up your training everyday while we’re here. You need to make sure your fighting skills are extremely sharp. You’ll probably also need a good teacher to train you.” 

“A teacher?” Gon didn’t know of any teachers in York New, and he was hesitant about calling someone like Bisky or Wing to help him. He didn’t want them tangled up in his mess. Then the idea dawned on him, “What about you, Sirena-san? Would you teach me?” 

The frown melted from her face as she smirked at his response and held up her hand, “Sorry, but I didn’t mean me. I definitely don’t have the patience to teach anyone. You should ask Hisoka, he seems to be invested in you getting stronger anyway.” 

“Ask Hisoka to train me?!” Gon practically yelled out as he stared at her with shocked eyes. 

“Sure, it would probably benefit you to learn from someone who’s fighting style is the polar opposite of yours,” Sirena said as she recalled the fight between Gon and Hisoka from years ago. The boy was a straight-forward fighter and extremely level headed and clever on the battlefield. Hisoka was an elegant fighter with a flair for the dramatic, often setting numerous traps and playing mind games with his opponent. If Gon was straight-forward and clever, Hisoka was calculating and manipulative. The boy would need every advantage he could store on his toolbelt if he hoped to help fight the troupe, and even then he still might be killed.

Gon folded his arms over his chest and brought his thumb and index finger up to his chin as he thought about it. Sure, Hisoka was a great fighter, but Gon wasn’t sure he could get the man to agree to teach him since it likely wouldn’t be very entertaining for him due to Gon not being able to use nen. 

As Gon was pondering over their conversation, Sirena began to clean up in the kitchen. She put their leftovers in the fridge and retrieved a bottle of wine she had gotten while they were out earlier that was now fully chilled. She grabbed two wine glasses from the cabinet and walked back over to the island where Gon was standing. She pulled a wine bottle opener from the drawer and had the bottle open in no time. She poured them both a glass, and Gon finally pulled himself from his thoughts as she pushed a filled glass towards him. 

“Gomen, Sirena-san. I’m not old enough to drink alcohol.” 

She picked up her glass and Gon watched as her elegant hand wrapped around the cup. “If you’re on this mission, you might not live long enough to reach the legal age. There are some things you should enjoy while you’re still alive, and a good wine is definitely one of them,” she lightly pushed the glass closer towards him as she spoke.

Gon hesitated, but he picked up the cup and smelled it. He wrinkled his nose as he inhaled, the smell sweet yet bitter. If he had smelled a plant like this, he would have avoided eating it assuming it was poisonous. He didn’t understand why people willingly poisoned themselves just to get a buzz that would eventually turn into a headache or hangover. 

Sirena raised her glass to him and waited for him to respond. Deciding it would probably be more impolite to continue to refuse her, he raised his glass back and they clinked as she breathed _“Cheers”._

Gon took a drink and it was exactly as he expected. His face scrunched up at the bitter and dry taste, and he set the glass back on the counter and reached for his water bottle. Sirena chuckled. 

“Bleh, how do you drink that stuff?” 

Sirena was smirking into her cup as she replied, “It’s an acquired taste.” 

Gon shook his head in disbelief, “Why would anyone want to acquire that taste?”

“Some see it as a way to dull their senses or drown their sorrows, others see it as liquid courage.”

Gon eyed the wine suspiciously. “Liquid courage?” 

“Sure, since it helps dull your senses you end up not caring about what you say as much. Your sober mind filters your thoughts to be considerate of those around you, but alcohol takes away that filter and most find it easier to speak about things they didn’t have the nerve to speak about before”

Taking her at her word, Gon suddenly grabbed the cup and drank the whole thing in one go, slamming it back down when he was done just barely not hard enough to keep it from shattering. Sirena raised her eyebrows in surprise as she saw his cheeks flush from the sudden warmth. 

“Sirena-san?” the boy spoke as amber eyes were blazing at her.

“Yes?”

“You challenged Hisoka to a fight, so how do you plan to win? What are your nen abilities?” 

Sirena blinked a couple of times and then couldn’t help but laugh. Men rarely surprised her but this boy was definitely something else. She hadn’t even gotten to tell him that for the filter to really be removed you needed to drink quite a bit and it wouldn’t work right away. He amused her, being such an earnest and direct person but still feeling like he needed courage to question her. Since he was the first person to make her genuinely laugh in what felt like ages, she decided to reward him. 

“I can show you my abilities, but you might not like them.” 

Gon’s face lit up in excitement, “Really?”

The woman couldn’t contain her cheshire cat grin, and her hazel eyes glittered mischievously. “Sure, but it will have to wait until tomorrow night. And we’ll have to go out hunting,” she said as she turned to leave the room. 

Gon didn’t understand what she meant by hunting, but he found himself filled with that nervous excitement he always felt before encountering someone extremely powerful. 

“Okay, tomorrow then!” 

The moonlight of the waning moon shone through the windows and bathed her in soft light as she chuckled and entered her room.

\---

_She opened her eyes and found herself in a dark forest with only the soft glow of the moon and a single torch offering any light. She didn’t know where she was, but it felt strangely familiar to her. She picked up the torch and looked around for a sign of where she was, but couldn’t see any signs or other travelers. The only thing she could see was that she was standing somewhere on a trail. With no other options or places to go, she decided to follow it in hopes of finding a clue. As she was walking the path, the sound of multiple animal footsteps appeared around her and drew closer. Out of the darkness a pack of wild dogs surrounded her, their dark skin stretched taut across corded muscle, the outline of their skeletons visible beneath. She looked into the obsidian eyes of what looked like the pack leader, and it seemed to almost bow its head to her. The others followed the leaders actions and bowed their heads as well before swarming around her and flanking her. After determining they weren’t a threat, she continued down the path, content in their company. They soon found themselves coming to a crossroads, and she could see the wispy outline of several people standing at the fork in the road, something seemingly blocking them from continuing on. The people also noticed her, and quickly hurried over to her. As they got closer she could see they weren’t warm bodies but merely translucent silvery apparitions with no distinctive features to indicate who they had been in their past life. She felt their cries calling out to her, their thoughts permeating into her mind._

_“O Goddess, we have been waiting for you!”_

_“Please help us! Please guide us to where we should go!”_

_She could feel the panic and terror rolling off of them and had to brace herself to not be carried away in their emotions. She found herself thinking that they were not the usual travelers she helped that had come to her after a long and weary journey. These spirits were sent here in a rush, their deaths having come to soon, leaving behind mountains of hopes, dreams, and unfinished business. These were always the hardest spirits to guide, their anchors to the mortal world harder to uproot as they begged not to be torn away from their homes. Among their fear she could feel the sorrows and regrets they were feeling, the emotions overwhelming and gut wrenching. She had seen more of these types of spirits showing up lately, and she could feel the anger in her blooming, her wrath for vengeance coming alive to overtake the grief she was feeling._

_Whoever kept sending these spirits to her would pay, and pay dearly. She would see to that._

_But first, she needed to determine who would be paying. She reached out with her mind, seeking to comfort the petrified souls and gain answers from them._

_“Do not fear my children, I will guide you. But first you must tell me who sent you here.”_

_“Thank you, O Divine One!”_

_“There is no need to thank me, I am merely doing my job. Now tell me who sent you here.”_

_“Yes, My Lady! We do not know their name, but it was a man that bore a false cross on his face and back!”_

_“Is that all you remember?”_

_The tensions among the spirits suddenly came back as she felt their panic rising again, their minds seemingly reliving the final moments of their deaths over again to try and recall. She could feel as they projected the images of their thoughts out to her, and she saw his face: Slicked back midnight hair, steel grey eyes, and a purple cross tattooed on his forehead._

_“Thank you my children, rest easy now. Follow the fork in the road to the right and you will find a welcoming place.”_

_She looked at one of the dogs and silently commanded them to help the spirits down the path. It followed her orders obediently and took off running, the spirits trailing like vapor behind it._

_Once they were safely out of sight, her rage was blooming again, and the fire from the torch in her hand shot up several feet in the air. The flames of the fire grew around her and engulfed her, and within them formed a fiery archway-shaped portal . She dropped the torch to the ground, the dogs whimpering around her as she walked through the portal and out onto the other side._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally planned this chapter to end with Gon & Sirena meeting back up with Hisoka & Killua, but the chapter was starting to push 20 pages in my word doc and I decided to just split it in half and share this piece first. :) 
> 
> Also I'm new to fanfics so I wasn't sure how to tag this, but Sirena isn't just based off a Greek Goddess, she IS one that has come to the mortal world of the Hunters. I'll update the tags for this but wanted to clear this up in case there was any confusion.
> 
> You're also probably thinking, wine again?! But in my mind, Greek Gods love a good wine, so I can't help but write her as indulging in it while among mortals lol.


	8. Ignite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! Thank you for waiting patiently for this update! I actually had this part of the story ready to go several days ago, but the chapter ended up getting sooo long again I figured it would be better to split it in half. I'm really trying to show the development between Sirena and Gon and give some key insights into her background.
> 
> But in better news, I'm practically finished with the next chapter too and will just need to polish it up before posting :)
> 
> I added something a little extra to this chapter to make it more fun :) Some of my favorite fic authors include songs in their chapters to listen to while reading. I've added 2 pieces here, so I hope you enjoy it! You won't miss anything if you don't listen but I hope it adds a lil something~

After their conversation last night, Gon found himself restless and eager to start back on his training; But Sirena wasn’t awake yet and since he couldn’t go anywhere without her, he settled for doing handstand push-ups in the living room. He had already done over 200 when Sirena finally emerged from her room, dragging her feet sleepily as she walked into the kitchen. Gon broke his form to put one foot on the floor so he could right himself and followed her like an eager puppy into the kitchen. She was fumbling around with a paper filter and some coffee grounds, her eyes barely opened as she seemed to be functioning on autopilot. 

“Good Morning, Sirena-san! Should I make us breakfast?” Gon said cheerfully, his extra energy exuding off him in waves.

She winced from the sudden loud noise, blinking several times as she tried to focus. She started the coffee maker and turned to the overly positive teen behind her, “No thank you, coffee will be more than enough,” she muttered, wishing the boy would let her wake up in peace.

But the persistent teen didn’t seem to be done just yet. “Ne Sirena-san, about my training. Can we start today? I want to at least get a good workout in before Killua and Hisoka come back.” 

The woman brought her hands up to her temples and rubbed them in small circles, focusing on her deep breathing. She probably wouldn’t hear the end of it if she denied him, and she didn’t want to deal with his exorbitant stores of energy if he was forced to pace around the apartment all day. 

“Fine, we can do some training today. But at least let me wake-up and have my coffee first.”

A huge grin lit up the teen’s face. “Okay!” 

\---

About an hour later, Sirena was finally ready to start their workout. She had showered and changed her clothes, now wearing blush pink biker shorts and a matching long sleeve crop top with chunky white sneakers that contrasted nicely against her tan skin. Her long brown hair had been tightly braided into two french braids down the back of her head and her face was free of makeup. 

Gon had been bouncing off the walls waiting for her, only having needed about 5 minutes to change into the black track pants and t-shirt he had brought just in case Killua had wanted to train. He was practically jogging in place near the front door as Sirena finally grabbed their keys and tucked it into the tiniest pocket Gon had ever seen in the thick waistband of her spandex shorts. 

Gon breathed in the fresh morning air as they walked out of the building and onto the city street. Their building was in a nicer area of the city, the clean sidewalks newly laid with flowers and plants neatly lining them with splashes of color. The city was busier than the one Heaven’s Arena had been in, but the sidewalks still weren’t packed. There were even a few others Gon noticed that were also jogging along, most wearing headphones as their feet pounded a steady beat into the pavement. 

Sirena was doing some light stretches as she told Gon what they would be doing. “Alright, so we are going to focus on your endurance and ability to evade today. I want you to try to evade me for as long as possible, sort of like a game of Tag. If I catch you that round is over, and you’ll have to do 500 reps of an exercise of my choice.”

Gon nodded, his whole body tingling with anticipation.

She looked at the watch she had put on before leaving as she said “Okay, I’ll give you a one minute headstart. Ready….Set….Go!”

Gon took off like lightning at ‘Go’, his feet propelling him so fast from where he had been standing that some bystanders turned to stare in bewilderment at the black and green blur of a person that suddenly disappeared. He was flying through the people on the sidewalk, effortlessly ducking and dodging any obstacles as he worked to put as much distance between him and his pursuant as possible. Not wanting to move in a straight line, he began following a random pattern of turning down different streets and alleyways, not caring to keep track of where he was. He quickly found he was lost in the city, but it didn’t bother him. If he was lost in the anonymity of the city it would be all the harder for him to be found. 

Gon had just rounded a sharp corner when he felt a sudden weight drop onto his back and he cried out in surprise as he crashed down to the ground, hard. He whipped his head around to see what had fallen on him, only to be met with the smiling face of Sirena. 

“5 minutes, not bad for your first try. You’ll have to work harder to evade me, though,” She chuckled as she got off him to stand up and offer her hand to Gon.

“Amazing!” Shining amber eyes looked back up at her, clearly impressed with her power and speed. 

He took her hand and stood up, dusting the grime and dirt off his pants as the woman spoke again “Alright, now for your punishment for being caught. Use that fire escape ladder over there and do 500 pull-ups.” 

The athletic teen hurried over and completed them quickly, as if that was merely a warm up he did everyday, barely even breaking a sweat from the activity. He was brimming with excitement as he walked back over to her and said:

“One more time!”

\---

Their game of tag continued for several hours until finally Gon was so exhausted and sore he could barely stand and Sirena declared they were done for the day. It took everything in him not to physically crawl back to the apartment, and in one final twist of the knife Sirena even forced him to take the stairs all the way up to the tenth floor where they were staying. They made it past the door and into the living room and Gon collapsed on the floor. Even though he was exhausted, he was still frustrated with his progress. His best time for evading Sirena had only been 15 minutes, and that had only been because he had set a grueling pace. It wasn’t that Sirena was significantly faster or more powerful than Gon, but what she lacked in those areas she made up for in terms of endurance and how she used her agility. She had incredible control over her aura and energy output, to where no drop of energy was expended without purpose. She had barely broken a sweat the whole time they had been at it, and Gon figured she probably could have kept up with him at his fastest pace all day if she had needed to. 

Sirena took mercy on her temporary disciple and brought him a bottle of water and a towel to help mop up some of the sweat that was pouring out of him like a faucet. His body was littered with scrapes and bruises from where she had sent him crashing to the concrete ground dozens of times throughout the day. Sure, she didn’t need to knock him down everytime she caught him, but she found most people thought of pain as a motivator to try harder and she had wanted to test how far she could push him. The kid hadn’t even done that bad considering he had no nen to help quicken his step or protect him as he fell, but she could see he was frustrated. She decided she would continuing being merciful and offer him a glimmer of hope that he could hold onto and be excited for later:

“Not bad for your first day. Get a shower, some food, and rest while you can. We’re still going out tonight.”

The trick worked and his face lit up. He gave her the thumbs up, still breathing too heavy to respond. 

\---

As the sun began to set Gon again found himself pacing the apartment waiting for Sirena. They had just finished dinner when Sirena had then told him to get dressed in an outfit she picked out for him to wear. He had hurriedly changed into her pick: black dress pants that were more fitted than Gon preferred, and a short-sleeve deep maroon short sleeve silk shirt. He didn’t know how or when she had acquired these clothes, as they definitely weren’t something he would have picked for himself. Gon felt uncomfortable dressed up but didn’t dare argue for fear that she wouldn’t let him accompany her to reveal her powers if he didn’t play along in whatever she had planned.

Gon had been pacing for almost an hour when Sirena finally came into the living room and Gon lifted his eyebrows in surprise. Her chocolate hair fell in tight waves down her back, her earlier braids having left their indent behind giving her hair more volume and texture. She had a black long sleeve bodysuit with a plunging neckline that went so far down it met the top of her black leather miniskirt, her thigh-high black boots allowing only a sliver of her upper thighs to be exposed. Her dramatic makeup style from the first night they met was back, but now she accented it with a striking red lipstick. 

Upon seeing Gon, she let out a small laugh. She could see the boy was visibly uncomfortable with the more formal outfit she had chosen for him by the way he had buttoned his shirt up all the way and tucked it tightly into his waistband like a waiter at a fancy restaurant. His naivety and purity was endearing to her and she couldn’t help but smile as she crossed the room over to him and spoke, “You clean up nice, but this won’t do.” 

“What’s wrong with it?” Gon practically pouted as he stopped his pacing long enough to glance down at himself and inspect what fault she could find with the outfit _she had picked._

Sirena stood in front of him and pointed to the top half of the buttons that went down his shirt, “Unbutton those top ones and don’t tuck your shirt so tight, then you’ll fit right in where we’re going.” 

Gon looked confused but did as he was told, his calloused fingers quickly undoing the buttons, his tan chest soon exposed more than Gon usually would have dared. He then lightly pulled at the material of his shirt where it was tucked in, tugging it just enough to slightly loosen the fit without removing it completely. Gon couldn’t decide if the changes helped or made him feel even more out of place. 

She grinned in approval and grabbed the apartment key, again putting it in a pocket in her skirt so small Gon couldn’t imagine how it would be useful at all, and then they were out the door and getting into a cab to take them to whatever mystery destination Sirena had in mind.

\---

The cab pulled up to the front of a hotel and Sirena directed the driver to drop them off at the front. The driver pulled into the circular entrance and came to a halt, Sirena barely waiting for the driver to shift into park before throwing the door open as she shoved a fistful of jenny at the him.

The hotel was grandiose and swanky, the modern structure juxtaposed to the classic and elegant hotel buildings that surrounded it. It was a massive structure made up of black and white honey-comb shapes with crystal clear glass windows. The windows of the white honey-comb shapes must have been made from a special material because the neon lights that were coming through those windows appeared to be iridescent. Through the black windows electric pink neon lights enhanced the breathtaking sight, the color adding a romantic base to the spectrum of colors. Whoever had built this hotel was nothing short of an incredible artist, and Gon awed at the building. Sirena tugged on his shirt and he finally unglued his gaze long enough to follow her into the hotel. 

Sirena and Gon walked into the lobby and up to the front desk where there was a line of people waiting to check in. When it was their turn to speak to a receptionist, Sirena leaned over the counter seductively and whispered something to the young male attendant on the other side. Gon noticed the man’s cheeks blush furiously and he refused to meet her gaze, but then he slid something across the desk to her. Gon didn’t see what the object was, but she chuckled and winked flirtatiously at him before pushing off the counter and walking away. Gon followed behind her as she guided them to an elevator. Once inside, she looked at what Gon realized was a piece of paper in her hand and then pressed a pattern of buttons on the panel. The elevator hummed to life and began to descend. 

“Where are we going?” Gon finally asked, unable to hold back his question any longer. 

Sirena’s face was serious as she looked back at him. She reached into her pocket and pulled out their apartment key and held it out to Gon as she spoke:

“If something goes wrong, you leave me and go straight back to our apartment. Don’t think twice about it or think you can save me, I can take care of myself, okay?” 

Her tone was dead serious and left no room for arguments. Gon nodded and took the key. She continued,

“Good. Now listen carefully. Once we are in there, follow my lead but you don’t need to be attached to my side. It will honestly be better if you keep a comfortable distance and try to blend in. Interact with people if they approach you but don’t give your real name if someone asks. Once I find a target, I’ll send you a signal and I want you to exit the building out the first exit you find and wait for me in the alley behind the hotel. Got it?”

Gon nodded once as he asked “What will the signal be?” 

She thought about that for a long second before answering, “I’m not sure yet, but I’ll make it indirect through a third party or slip you a message somehow. If I motion to you with my own body or eyes, that’s not the signal.” 

Gon clenched his fist tight around the key he was handed, that feeling of nervous excitement swelling up inside him again. He pocketed the key and then the elevator dinged as they arrived at their destination and their night finally began.

[ (Listen to this) ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyOD0j5-CEY&t=29s)

The metal doors slid open to reveal a long darkened hallway that was only wide enough to allow two people to comfortably walk side by side. Gon could hear a faint hum and pulse of music coming from the end of the hallway where two huge muscular men were standing in front of an ominous door. They were both wearing sunglasses and earpieces, which Gon found extremely odd since the hallway was already dimly lit. As they got closer the bouncer on the left grunted out a single word:

“Password?”

Sirena didn’t hesitate, “Omertà.”

The bouncer on the right said nothing but then opened the door and they were allowed to pass. 

Gon went wide eyed as he gasped in astonishment at the sight.

The door opened up into an enormous room twice the size of even the grandest ballrooms Gon had ever seen. There was a rainbow of neon lights lining the floors and walls and even more strobe and laser lights illuminating the room from above. There were several cages suspended high up in the air with scantily dressed women dancing to the blaring music. Despite the size of the room the space was crowded, several hundreds of people packed into the hall as they danced with drinks in hand. Along the walls Gon noticed there were booths, tables, and lounge areas set up that were all also filled with hardly any extra space. Gon felt almost dizzy from the assault to his senses, completed with the thick smell of sweat and alcohol. He turned to look at Sirena, not sure why she would have brought him here and he was even more surprised at her reaction.

Whatever hard look she had been wearing before had melted from her face, her smile and hazel eyes glittering in the flashing lights. A woman with a tray of drinks was walking near them, and Sirena gracefully plucked two drinks off the tray unnoticed and handed one to Gon. If Gon thought wine had smelt bad, this drink smelled like straight rubbing alcohol behind a thin veil of sugar. Without any explanation she tossed her head back and drank her whole cup in one swift go. She smirked mischievously at Gon and handed him her empty cup before dancing off and disappearing into the crowd. 

_What is this place?_

Gon had so many questions running through his mind he didn’t even know where to start. _Why did she bring me here, and what kind of prey could be found in the middle of a dance floor? How would this explain her nen abilities? What am I even supposed to do in this environment?_ His mind was running in circles and he tried to think back to what she had said before to give him a clue on what to do. Her words replayed in his mind: “... _It will honestly be better if you keep a comfortable distance and try to blend in...”_

How was he supposed to fit in? As he looked around at the ocean of faces, he stuck out like an obvious sore thumb. It was a good mix of men and women, but they were all older than him and clearly under the influence. He noticed almost everyone's face looked flushed and shiny with sweat, a mix of the alcohol and dancing equal parts responsible for the color on their faces. Not only was he the youngest person here, but probably the only sober one around besides the bouncers outside the doors. Sirena had told him not to stick close to her, but without her near he felt like a lonely iceberg in the middle of the sea, frozen in place and not sure where to go next. 

_….try to blend in…_

Gon gripped the cup tighter in his hand. Sirena had probably handed this to him for a reason, and while he didn’t like the idea of drinking he decided it might be his only option. He followed Sirena’s earlier movements and quickly downed the drink, the alcohol burning like ice as it went down his throat, the sugary mixer barely doing anything to lessen the bitter taste. Gon looked around for a spot to discard the small glass cups, but before he could find one he spotted another waitress walking by with a tray of empty glasses. He snuck two more on without her noticing and took a deep breath. 

_Okay, that’s one part of blending in. Now what do I do?_

Gon knew he should try to find a way to merge into the mass of dancing bodies on the floor, but he had barely ever danced, let alone whatever it was people were doing in front of him. It wasn’t the elegant or skilled forms of dances he had seen before, it was more like couples were holding onto each other as they grinded and rubbed their bodies on each other to the beat of the music. It seemed both too intimate and too anonymous, like nothing could break them apart but both danced like they knew they would inevitably separate to hunt down a new body when one song ended. 

Gon frowned as he thought about what to do. Even if he wanted to join in, he was alone and knew no one to approach to ask to dance. 

Several songs had cycled through when Sirena caught a glimpse of Gon through the crowd and smirked as she noticed the boy still standing nervously where she had left him earlier. Ever merciful, she snaked her way back through the crowd towards the teen as the song changed and the sound of latin trumpets and the reverberations of the speakers filled the air. 

(Listen to _Looking at Me by Sabrina Carpenter_ )

His big amber eyes looked at her bewildered as she grabbed his hands and drug him into the crowd of people. 

Once they were submerged in the crowd, she guided his hands around her waist loosely as she gripped onto his shoulders. She began to twist her hips to the beat of the music as she led him through the dance, and he found his rhythm quicker than she would have imagined and in no time he was able to match the movements of his feet to hers and sway in time with her. After she was confident they were in sync, she slowly backed away from him and grabbed his hands again, letting go of one as she got far enough away only to spin into his chest quickly and snap back out to twirl under his arm. He pulled her back close to him and she met his eyes with a smirk and whispered in his ear, “Now you lead.”

Never one to back down from a challenge, Gon did as he was told.

He twirled and spun his partner skillfully around, not stopping long enough for either to catch their breath or notice anyone else. He became lost in the music as their bodies melded into one, each fighting for dominance to execute one incredible move after another. Not one to lose, as the beat of the song began to swell he put both hands on her waist and lifted her high into the air in time with the climax of the trumpets. At the peak of the lift she rested one knee on his shoulder and leaned back as she extended her arms out above the people around her. He spun them around in a full circle before lifting her a little higher to lower her as the song began to slow before coming to an end.

Both of them were breathing heavy as the song changed and the magic of their moment was lost. 

Gon became aware suddenly that people had formed a circle around them and were now clapping as their dance ended. Sirena smiled at him as she pulled the teen close once more to whisper in his ear, “I can’t get close to you again tonight, so now you’re on your own. Wait for my singal,” and with that she was backing away and dissolving into the crowd. The onlookers soon filled the empty space around Gon and he smiled as he said a silent thank you to Sirena for going out of her way to make him feel more at ease. 

He was just wondering how he would find another partner when a young woman approached him. She had long strawberry blonde hair and was exceptionally pretty, her narrow chin and eyes accentuating the heart shape of her face. She was dressed in a short red dress that clung to her body and her deep blue eyes were sparkling like crystals in the light. She had a commanding aura about her, like someone who knew exactly what they wanted and narrowly went after it. 

She tapped him on the shoulder and spoke loud enough for him to hear over the blasting music, “I’ve never seen you here before” 

Gon sheepishly smiled as he replied, “This is my first time here! What’s your name?”

Sapphire eyes lit up as she answered his question, “You can call me Inanna.”

Gon beamed back at her as he spoke, “Nice to meet you Inanna, I’m Yoshihiro. You can call me Hiro, though.” Gon tried not to let his face indicate he was lying, since he had just plucked that name randomly out of his head. It felt familiar somehow though, and if he had to keep up a facade he was confident he would remember this one. 

The young woman softly smiled, “Would you like to dance with me, Hiro-kun?”

“Of course!” 

Time seemed to melt away as the pair danced through several songs together. Inanna wasn’t a flashy dancer like Sirena had been, but she had great footwork and didn’t try to fight Gon for dominance as they moved together. Since they weren’t doing any complicated tricks, Gon was quick to notice she was touching his arms and chest alot, her long nails lightly gracing over the exposed areas of his skin. She was always the one to initiate close contact, pulling Gon into risque embraces and forcing his hands to stay on the more intimate spots of her body. 

While most men would have picked up on her suggestive hints, they didn’t really phase Gon. When she would try to meet his eyes with her heavy lidded gaze, he would only smile sweetly back at her and ask if she was having fun. Frustrated with his lack of understanding, she would only mutter something that got drowned out in the music and pull Gon closer to start her attempts over again. 

Just when her frustration threatened to steam over, a waitress appeared in the crowd and approached them, carrying a single glass of red wine. She handed it to Gon as she said, “Someone at the bar named Usagi-chan told me to bring this over to you.” 

Gon’s eyes narrowed as he realized what this was. _Sirena’s message!_

The waitress said nothing more and was quickly retreating while Inanna was practically glaring at him. 

“Who’s Usagi-chan?”, her accusing tone coming off harsher than she meant it. 

Gon forced a smile as he turned his attention back to her, “Just a friend. He told me he would send me a drink when he was ready to go.”

She arched one eyebrow and pursed her lips at him, “He? Not that woman from before?”

Gon feigned an innocent chuckle, drawing on the times Hisoka had used a sly chuckle to mask a lie. He knew he wasn’t a good liar but he didn’t have many references to go off of and the magician was the only one that came to mind at the moment.

“No, not her. She approached me and asked for a dance so I obliged. I don’t know her, though.” 

He wasn’t sure if she believed him or not, but she seemed to relax a little. He offered her the glass of wine and a smile as she glanced from the cup back to him.

“Here, you take this as thanks for dancing with me. I’ve got to leave now or my friend will be really mad at me.” 

She reached out her hand, but instead of taking the glass she wrapped her hand around his and pulled him into her to kiss his cheek. He blushed lightly, but wasn’t overwhelmed by the act. Plenty of the women that had forced him to go on dates back on Whale Island had kissed him on the cheeks, and as he got older some of the more brazen ones had even kissed him on the lips. 

He flashed her a brilliant smile in return as she took the cup, “I had a lot of fun, Inanna-san.”

Dazzled by his smile, she couldn’t say anything as he turned around and started forcing his way through the crowd. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh, what did you think?? The Inanna character is based off the Sumerian Goddess of love/sensuality/war (kind of like Aphrodite/Venus) I thought it would be really fun for Gon to encounter the Goddess of love and not fall victim to her charms. 
> 
> Also, while Gon and Sirena are getting closer I have no intentions of them getting together. Gon is still only a teenager in her eyes, after all. They are more like senpai/kohai than anything else. 
> 
> This (probably) won't be official KilluGon, but in my heart Gon only has eyes for Killua so I can't write him with anyone else. ╥﹏╥


	9. Inferno

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirena shows Gon how she acquired the other's nen abilities.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi folks, finally we are at the end of Sirena & Gon's solo time. These chapters ended up being a lot longer than I expected, but let me know if you're liking or not liking the pacing. This is very self indulgent writing for me and I don't have anyone proofreading before I post so it's only the inner machinations of my mind controlling the chapters and I would love feedback. :)
> 
> Also another song to listen to, I'll add it in the spot you should start it.
> 
> Enjoy!

Gon quickly found his way back to the door they had entered through and took the elevator back up to the main lobby. He beelined for the entrance, ignoring the looks of the other patrons glaring at the teenager practically running through the extravagant lobby. He soon found himself back out on the sidewalk of the sprawling city, the smoggy air and sound of traffic for once a welcome greeting that he was back outside. Gon fished his cellphone out of his pocket, startled to realize that they had been in there for several hours and it was now getting close to midnight. He noticed he had a text from Killua but he chose to ignore it for now, shoving his phone back into his pocket as he hurried along the building and turned the corner into the side alley. He ran the length of the building to the back alley, frantically searching for any sign of Sirena but sensing no one else around.

_She must be on her way out and sent me here first._

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a few shady figures making their way down the dark alley where he had just come from. Not wanting to get mixed up in any trouble, he scanned the area looking for a place he could hide until Sirena arrived. He saw a fire escape ladder that scaled the side of the parking garage that was on the other side of the alley and he rushed to scramble up the metal rungs. He had just perched on the first level and ducked down out of sight when he realized Sirena was one of those shady figures.

_Sirena….and someone else?_

The person next to her was a man with rat-like facial features: a long pointed nose, thin lips, and beady black eyes. He looked to be older than her, dressed in a midnight suit that looked tailored and expensive. He had one arm hanging around her shoulders keeping her close, using her partly for support as his feet stumbled over every small crack in the sidewalk. Gon narrowed his eyes at the man as he realized he wasn’t just using her for support, but his grip around her was locked tight on her in a controlling manner. 

As they got closer to Gon, the man pulled her tightly towards him to speak slurred words right in her ear. Gon noticed a cruel flash in her eyes and in a split second her hand connected to the back of the man’s neck and he crumpled to the ground. 

Hazel eyes raised to meet Gon’s and he jumped down to the concrete below. Sirena squatted down near Rat Man and pulled something out of his pocket before moving his hands behind his back. They stayed clamped together after she released them and Gon realized she must have used Bungee gum to restrain them in place. She rose up again as she spoke, 

“We need to get out of here quickly. Can you carry him?”

“I can, but why are we taking him? Who is he?” Gon said as he bent down to throw the slumped man over his shoulder. 

Sirena’s stern voice answered him, “I’ll explain once we get out of here,” and with that she started walking towards the parking garage Gon had just been hiding in. Gon followed close behind, and they rode the elevator of the garage up to the 8th floor. Once they exited the elevator, Sirena pressed the button of the keyfob she had taken from the Rat Man’s pocket and a car alarm beeped about 50 feet away from them. 

As they came up to the car, Sirena unlocked the doors and opened one for Gon so he could stuff their unconscious captive in the backseat. Closing the door behind him, he walked around and got into the passenger seat as Sirena was adjusting the mirrors and chair settings to prepare to drive.

Sirena was pulling the car out of the garage and onto the street when Gon spoke again. 

“Where are we taking him?” 

Sirena didn’t take her eyes off the road, “A nearby forest. You said you wanted to see my ability, right?”

“Yes, but I don’t see why you needed to capture someone to show me.”

Hazel eyes darkened as a red light fell over them. With the car stopped, she turned her head to look at Gon, “You know about the different nen types, right?” 

Gon looked confused but nodded as he listed them: “Enhancer, Transmuter, Conjurer, Manipulator, Emitter, Specialist.”

Sirena turned her attention back to the front as the light turned green and stepped on the gas, “Correct. I’m a specialist.”

“Is that how you can copy other’s abilities?”

A devious smirk played at her lips, “Sort of. There’s more to it, but it would be easier to show you than explain. That’s why we need him.” 

A silence fell over them as Gon found himself deep in thought, comfortable in the lull of the car ride through the sleepy city. After a while, the buildings started to become sparse as they reached the outskirts of York New. Sirena turned the car onto a winding path, minutes ticking by as the city fell into the rearview mirror and a forest of trees surrounded them. Sirena drove the car into a small clearing and came to a slow stop, catching Gon’s attention as she shifted the gears into park. 

“To show you my abilities, I need you to tell me about someone else’s nen powers. Preferably someone who is a manipulator. You don’t have to fully understand how it works, just give me the basic details.” 

Gon frowned as he was plunged back into thought. _Manipulator? Have I met anyone who was a manipulator?_ Gon could feel the engine of his mind heating up as he tried to recall others powers that fit into that category. Hisoka was the only one who had willingly told Gon what category he fell into back when he was telling Gon about his aura personality test theory. Gon had made assumptions for others' powers he had seen, but he could count on one hand the categories of people he knew for certain. Wing-san, Zushi, and Killua of course…. _Killua!…._

“Ah! I know!” Gon snapped his fingers as realization hit him, “Killua’s brother, Illumi. He was able to change the shape of his face by inserting needles, but Killua said he could do it without needles too for a limited time. I have no idea how he does it, though!”

Sirena shut the engine of the car off as she nodded, “I can work with that. It’s time, then.”

They exited the car and Gon hauled out the man from the back. Sirena combed the edge of the treeline and found a large broken tree branch, and then used her nen to enhance the wood so that she could draw a symbol into the ground. She drew a large circle, and then within that a pattern of curved lines that encased a star in the center. She moved to stand outside the circle and drew what looked like the phases of the moon around the outer rim of the circle.

She looked back at Gon as she pointed to the center of the circle, “Place him over there.” 

Gon followed her orders and walked to the center of the circle, carefully stepping around the lines to avoid messing it up. He gently lowered the man over the star and backed away slowly. He was feeling strangely tense, a chill washing over him like something terrible was about to take place. Yet again a feeling he couldn’t explain, like he should bolt from this place and never look back. As if to punctuate the solemn mood, the moon was almost completely blacked out and the endless darkness felt like it was crashing down to consume them.

Gon was almost starting to dread coming out here when Sirena lit a match she must have stored in her tiny pocket and created a torch from the stick she had used earlier. She handed it to Gon, and he was grateful to have a source of light and warmth to ground him to the present. 

_This is no time to think about running away!_

_(Listen: No Time To Die by Billie Eilish)_

Sirena moved to the spot where the new moon was drawn onto the ground as she began to draw on her aura. Out of thin air she materialized an ancient looking tome, its' black leather spine bound with ornate silver latches around it. She unlatched the book to open it and turned to a blank page, graceful fingers flittering effortlessly over the dusty pages. She placed her hand flat on the page and suddenly black inked words began to appear, though Gon couldn’t make out what they said. 

Once the page was filled in, she raised her head to stare up at the night sky. She took several long, deep breaths, like she was waiting for something. After what felt like forever, her cold hazel eyes snapped down to focus on the man laying on the ground in front of her. 

“Wake Up!” She yelled, her penetrating tone slicing through the calm of the forest like a sharp blade. 

The man stirred, blinking several times as he tried to look around. Once he noticed the woman who was still holding the book shock overtook his face as he realized where he was. 

“You!” he squawked out, his voice raspy from taking a hit to the back of the neck. 

Now that her prey was awake, she started to speak in a language Gon couldn’t understand. It sounded like she was reciting something from memory, but Gon couldn’t say for sure. All he knew was that she wasn’t speaking to him or the man directly, but to something else. The man started cursing as she spoke, desperately trying to escape from his spot on the ground though the most he could do was clumsily rise to his knees, his arms yanking against the bungee gum that was keeping him tethered to the ground.

“What are you doing you stupid bitch?! You’ll regret this, I’ll have all of your family and friends killed!”

Sirena and the man stopped speaking at the same time as her incantation came to an end and her eyes glowered down into his. 

Gon realized with a shocked gasp that her eyes were now glowing bright white and intricate black tattoos had appeared like an ornamental tiara around her forehead. In the center of the design was a dark circle with two crescent moons on either side, the moon shapes glowing the same white as her eyes. 

The man mirrored Gon’s horrified expression as he cowered beneath her while she spoke,

“Mortal, this will be your trial. You have killed countless people and willingly distributed drugs in extreme quantities. Do you deny this?”

“W-what? I don’t know what you’re talking about!” he stuttered, his tough act dissipating as terror rose within him.

Shining eyes bore down on the man, “I gave you the opportunity to confess, but I can see you have chosen denial. Very well, it makes no difference to me. Your reign of terror ends tonight.” 

She reached down into the leg of her boot and produced a long silver dagger with a red ruby embedded on the hilt as she began chanting again.

Fear fully took over the man as he pleaded and begged for his life, his voice cracking as his screams for help were lost to the blackness of the night. Gon felt his stomach clench as the cries filled his ears, but he couldn’t bring himself to move. In a final attempt to be heard, the man directed his attention towards Gon to beg for the onlookers help. Gon, usually someone who acted without thinking, froze in place like someone had socked him in his stomach as he gasped for breath and helpless tears stung his eyes. Before he could will himself to move and save the man, Sirena rushed forward in a flash and plunged the dagger right into the man’s heart. 

The man’s gurgled cries came to a stop as his face fell, succumbing to the death she had sentenced him to.

Once the life fully slipped from the man’s eyes, Sirena slowly pulled the dagger out and the body slumped over into the ground. She held the point of the dagger over the open page of her book and a single drop of blood dripped onto the page, illuminating in a burst for a brief instant at the offering before it dimmed again. 

She closed the book and bent down to wipe the leftover blood on her dagger on the clothes of the dead man. When she was satisfied that it was clean, she tucked it back into her boot and walked over to Gon. Once her foot crossed back outside of the circle, her tattoos disappeared and her eyes returned to their normal hazel color. Not speaking a word, she took the torch from Gon’s hand and tossed it into the middle of the circle next to the body.

The man’s clothes caught on fire and within a few minutes his body was fully engulfed in the flames, the red hot fire a burning beacon like a pyre.

Gon finally looked away, unable to further stomach the gruesome stench or sight in front of him. He stumbled over to a tree and braced himself against it as he dry heaved, the alcohol from earlier making a sudden unwelcome appearance as he vomited. Gon was no stranger to blood or violence, but he had never seen the flesh of someone’s face melt off from their skull or smelled the stench of burning hair and skin. His sharp senses were usually something he was grateful for, but in times like these they felt more like a punishment to suffer through nature like no one else did. 

Sirena appeared behind him and handed him something. It was a wad of flowers, leaves, and grass from the forest twisted together. Gon turned his head only enough to look up at her.

“Hold this in front of your nose and breath, you’ll feel better.” 

He yanked the wad from her as he raised his head to her, “You didn’t tell me you were going to kill him!” 

Her face was like stone, unforgiving and unrepentant, “He was a drug dealer for the mafia and killed dozens or maybe even hundreds of people. He deserved death.”

“I thought you said only the Gods should pass judgement on people!”

“I did.”

A mix of resentment, despair, and confusion played on Gon’s face as he muttered, “then why did _you_ kill him?”

“To do what I said, show you my abilities. To gain another’s powers, a price must be paid. That’s why I hunt down known killers and use them in my rituals.”

Gon stared down at the ground for a long time after that and Sirena left his side to do something about the body. Gon had seen death before, had known it intimately himself, but he didn’t know how to feel about the execution he had just witnessed. When people entered fights, they set the rules and knew their lives were on the line. That was fair. Gon understood the nature and balance of the world as hunters took down their prey, but he didn’t know how to feel about watching someone beg for their life and still be cut down. The fact that the man was a murderer didn’t change much of that in Gon’s opinion, as even some killers deserved a chance to repent and change their ways. _What if she had tried to use Killua in that demonic ritual?_

Gon shook his head before he could board that train of thought. He knew if he kept thinking about that, he wouldn’t be able to stop his body from running from this place straight to Killua and abandoning their mission. No, he had to see this through. He wouldn’t back down now. 

The teen clenched his fist as he took a deep breath and then straightened up. “Sirena-san?”

She had dug a shallow grave in the ground and was currently pushing the body into it. She looked up from what she was doing in his direction as she responded, “Yes?”

Gon crossed over to her and knelt down to help scoop the free dirt into the hole. “Can you explain your nen to me?”

She wiped her arm across her forehead as a bead of sweat dripped down. “I told you I was a specialist, well _Spellbook_ is one of my powers. I can copy the nen abilities of anyone by doing the ritual you just saw, however it does have limitations. First, I can only store one ability from each of the nen types at any time. Hisoka’s Bungee Gum is a Transmuter ability, and Kurapika’s Judgement Chain takes up both Conjurer and Emitter types. That’s why I asked you for a manipulator’s ability, so that the others wouldn’t be overwritten.”

Gon was processing all of this information as she continued,

“I don’t have to see someone’s powers with my own eyes to be able to add it to my book, but I have to have some sort of basic description and idea of what it entails. Because of the sacrifice I make, if an ability carries a covenant or restriction, I don’t have to take those on.”

Gon pushed more dirt into the hole trying to focus on her words more than the task. 

Sirena stood and started using her foot to rearrange the dirt to hide the symbol she had drawn into the ground.

“The second limitation is that I can only perform this ritual during a New Moon, and it has to be when the moon is at its’ highest point. I only need a drop of their blood, but they have to be sacrificed during the ritual or it won’t work. That’s why I hunt for criminals, cold-blooded killers who revel in their power to kill others. Consider it my own form of criminal justice.”

With the grave fully covered, Gon forced himself to stand. 

Thinking about it, Gon reconciled that what Sirena had done was similar to their goal of taking down the Troupe. They weren’t like Killua, someone who was born an assassin and had realized the value of human life. They cut through anyone who stood before their goals, even if that person was helpless and defenseless. They massacred Kurapika’s clan and desecrated their bodies to profit from their eyes. If this was the path Gon had to walk to get rid of those monsters, he would shoulder the burden.

Darkened amber eyes met Sirena’s,

“I understand.”

\---

Sirena drove the dead man’s car to an abandoned junkyard and they left it there, Sirena saying something about wanting to be on the safe side and not leave any evidence. They jogged the several miles back to the city, neither speaking a word the whole way back. Once they returned, Gon muttered ‘Good Night’ to Sirena and went to sit in isolation in his assigned room. 

He felt a buzz in his pocket and pulled out his phone to read the missed text from Killua he noticed earlier and the new one he had just received.

_Nanika was able to heal Hisoka, but he’ll be out for a while. We’ll leave as soon as he wakes up. I tried asking him about Sirena’s ability but he claims he doesn’t know anything. How are things going on your end?_

That text had come through earlier in the afternoon, well over 12 hours ago at this point. Killua must be worried, and that came through in the message he had just sent:

_Gon, is everything alright? I know you’re horrible at keeping up with your phone, but I haven’t heard from you all day. Hisoka still isn’t awake but we’re leaving on the first flight out in the morning even if I have to drag his stupid body all the way to the airport._

A hint of a smile passed over Gon’s face at the idea of Killua dragging an unconscious Hisoka to the airport. It helped calm him down a little bit, and he sent a message back so Killua could stop worrying

_Killua, sorry for taking so long to reply! Everything is okay, don’t worry. I found out Sirena’s ability. We’ll talk about it when you get back. Travel safe and see you soon._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AH, this is the moment I've been waiting to share for so long!!!! Hopefully you understand how her power works, but I'll leave another description below. Some notes for the chapter:
> 
> 1) I know it feels a little out of character for Gon not to intervene, but I think his curiosity about her power mixed with his self doubts from what happened during the CA arc have made him hesitant to act as quickly as he normally would have.
> 
> 2) Can you guess which Greek Goddess she is? I've been hinting at it for the last few chapters but I hoped this one cemented it for you! I won't say yet in case you haven't guessed and want to be surprised but I definitely have been trying to drop a lot of hints.
> 
> 3) Sirena's tattoos around her forehead are another nod to Sailor Moon, but I tried to put a more mythical spin on it. If you've ever read the House of Night series (By P.C. & Kristin Cast) her tattoos are sort of similar to the tattoos described in those books, if you want to look up pictures for reference. Also highly recommend the HoN books if you haven't read them, they were a favorite for me when I was in middle school (and yea I'm kind of dating myself with that info but oh well)
> 
> 4) Spellbook isn't her only nen ability but I'm trying not to make her too OP. Here's a description of her Spellbook:
> 
> Spellbook — new 'spells' (abilities) can only be added during a new moon  
> a. Has to make a human sacrifice, she drops blood into her spell book and this allows her to imitate a targets nen ability without taking on their restrictions (ex: She could use Genthuru's Countdown without needing to meet the two conditions. She hasn't acquired this ability but I'm using it as an ex since it has well known conditions)  
> b. Can only have 1 of each type of nen at a time (ex: if she were to acquire a new transmuter ablity, she would no longer be able to use Bungee Gum. If she wants to get an ability back she has to make another sacrifice)  
> c. If the ability uses multiple types then it will take the place of the one it majority falls under. She can’t copy specialist ability because she herself is a specialist. (Ex: She can copy Kurapika's chains but she can't copy his Emperor Time ability, and she wouldn't be able to copy Chrollo's Skill Hunter ability either)
> 
> In the next chapter Killua and Hisoka will be back, so look forward to that bc I know I am :-)


	10. Promises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, sorry it has taken me so long to update! I had this written out when the last chapter was posted, but it just felt flat and I wasn't entirely confident I had gotten the dialogue just right, so I rewrote a big portion of it. For that reason it is a bit shorter than the previous chapters, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. It will probably come back to haunt me at 2 am when I'm frantically rereading it, so I might come back and make a few edits eventually.
> 
> Also, I don't know if there should be a TW but there are some pretty depressive thoughts in the first few paragraphs if you want/need to skim over them. If you're a masochist like me and want to make yourself cry for some reason (sometimes we all need a good cry) you could listen to My Immortal by Evanescence. That's what I was listening to when I wrote it if you want to be in the same head space I was in (which I don't recommend so do that at your own risk lol)

Gon woke up to the early morning rays gently shining into his room. 

Memories from last night flooded his mind, but he decided to put those thoughts in a locked box in the dim recess of his mind until Killua returned. Gon was strong, he had gone 2 years without his friend physically there to support him, but too much had happened in the last few days that were too much to bear alone. He was at a war in his mind, unsure of how to keep taking steps forward and knew if anyone could understand and point him in the right direction, it was the former assassin. Killua, who was always his voice of reason, always the one who was supposed to keep a level head and think things through when Gon would rush ahead. He had said it once back after the first time they’d escaped from the troupe, that it was Gon’s job to say crazy stuff and Killua’s job to stay cool and stop him, but it still rang true even today. 

That was part of the reason he still felt immeasurable guilt from turning his back to Killua’s voice of reason during his fight with Pitou. 

Gon had been the one to say it, so he couldn’t forgive himself for the heartless things he had said to Killua when he was blinded by grief and rage. The things he had said to his best friend in the whole world, who was only trying to help him. Killua had called him selfish back when they’d escaped, but it felt like a knife in the chest to know just how true that statement was. Gon _was_ selfish, was stubborn and stupid and not deserving of a friend like Killua who followed him to the ends of the earth to find the father that had abandoned him. Killua, who had called out his name with tears running down his face as Gon let go of everything that tied him to this world, his other half included. 

If the roles had been reversed, and Killua had been the one to walk so easily into death’s arms, would Gon have forgiven him? 

It had been a miracle that Killua didn’t hate him, let alone that he had still considered Gon his friend too. What pain had he put his friend through when he thought Gon had died? He shuddered just imagining it. Killua was Gon’s best friend, his other half, his whole world, his everything. Gon choked back a sob as he realized tears were spilling from his eyes, despair engulfing him as he fell into the endless torment his mind subjected him to anytime he thought about this subject at length. 

All alone in his room, he wept openly then. The dark haired boy let his grief consume him, thoughts screaming out things he had said to himself a million times. _I’m so sorry Killua, it’s all my fault, if I could take it all back I would! Killua, please forgive me! Please don’t leave me! If I could rewind time and go back I would do everything differently, I would reach out to you like you did to me. Killua, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I want to stay by your side forever, I want to go back to how things used to be._

If only he could rewind time he would go back and say the one thing he had never gotten to say properly: _Killua, I love you!_

He would spend his whole life making it up to Killua, and even then he wondered if that would be enough. Gon brought shaky hands up to wipe his tears away, his eyes bloodshot and swollen from crying. He stared with empty brown eyes at the ceiling as he took deep breaths until he felt like he had a grip on his emotions again.

One thing he had learned from his therapist was that when he felt like he was entering a depressive episode to occupy his mind with tangible things he could accomplish and not allow himself to wallow in despair. That advice in mind, he decided he needed to get out of bed before he spent the whole day reliving a past he couldn’t change.

Hisoka and Killua were scheduled to land in York New later this afternoon, so he would have to find something to occupy his time until then. 

He went to the kitchen and made Sirena and him breakfast, a simple meal of eggs, sliced fruit and toast. He knocked on Sirena’s door to let her know about breakfast, and she muttered an unintelligible response. Since it didn’t seem like she would be awake anytime soon, he ate breakfast alone, trying to think about what he would do next. 

After he finished eating he cleaned in the kitchen and covered Sirena’s untouched breakfast so it would still be good when she finally woke up. Still stalling for time, he decided he might as well take a shower. He let the warm water pour over him and wash the sweat and musikness from last night with it. Once he noticed the skin of his fingers getting pruney he turned the lukewarm water off, stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. He got dressed in simple black track pants and a white t-shirt and walked back out into the living area. 

It was only 9 am. He sighed heavily. 

He went back into his room and fished out a small journal he had started carrying with him, another recommendation by his therapist. He wasn’t much of a writer and he didn’t keep a normal schedule of writing in it, but whenever he was feeling confused or sad he would write down three things he was happy for. Today he wrote those three things easily: Killua, Mito-san, and new opportunities. With those things in mind, he placed his journal back in his bag and went to meditate in the living room. He found a comfortable spot by the large windows, and settled down on the floor letting the warmth of the sun fall over him. He focused intensely on his breathing and let his mind go blank except for those three things he had wrote down earlier.

About an hour later Sirena finally stumbled out into the living room. She looked her usual disheveled self first thing in the morning, but Gon noticed despite sleeping in late her eyes looked more exhausted than usual. He stood from where he was sitting and walked into the kitchen and found Sirena pouring herself a cup of coffee. 

“Sirena-san?”

Bleary eyes looked back at the teen, “Oh, good morning Gon. Did you sleep well?”

Sirena sat the pot of coffee down and turned to grab the creamer, but before he could reply her legs seemed to give out and she started to fall forward. Gon’s arms darted out and grabbed her before she could hit the floor as he cried out, “Sirena-san! Are you okay?” 

Sirena sighed as she rubbed her sleepy eyes, the sudden alertness from almost hitting the ground helping to wake her up a little bit. 

“I’m okay, thanks for catching me. I’m usually weaker during the daytime, and doing the ritual exasperates that. I’ll be fine later tonight, though.”

Her voice sounded stronger than she looked, and the near fall seemed to bring some life back into her hazel eyes. Gon was still concerned for her, wondering how much energy that ritual really sapped from her if it caused her to nearly pass out. Despite her confirmations, he scooped her up bridal style and carried her to the couch, where he carefully sat her down. 

Gon walked into the kitchen to grab her coffee, still talking to her as he crossed the room “You should rest if you’re tired, then. Especially if Hisoka is coming back today. I imagine he’ll want to fight you right away.” 

That earned a faint smile from the woman. “You’re probably right, but unfortunately for him he’ll have to wait.”

Gon was back in front of her and handing her a mug, already having made it to how she liked it. He also went to her room and grabbed her blanket and pillow from her bed and brought it out to her so she could get comfy on the couch, something that Mito-san would do for him whenever he was sick but wanted to be out in the living room and around people. 

Once she was situated, Sirena continued, “And anyway, you’re the one who will have a real dilemma with Hisoka today. Have you thought about how you’ll ask him to be your teacher?” 

Gon frowned nervously. His mind had been occupied with Killua and Sirena and her nen ability, not asking Hisoka to be his mentor. He had no idea how he would get the magician to agree to help him. 

“I don’t know how to ask him, I don’t think he will be very interested in me since I can’t use nen anymore,” Gon said, eyes downcast to the floor. 

Sirena considered that for a moment, thinking back to what she knew about Gon and Hisoka’s odd relationship, “You two met before you fought in Heaven’s Arena, right? And you said that was when you and Killua had first learned nen? So he was interested in you before you even learned nen?”

Gon’s eyes lit up. Of course, Hisoka must have thought Gon would become even more powerful after learning nen, but Sirena’s questions reminded him he had still fought against the magician before he had learned nen and he had been able to land an attack on the man twice. For the first time in a long time, Gon allowed hope to rise in his chest and he smiled. He didn’t need to be the strongest person around, but if he could be strong enough to create an opening for someone else to swoop in, that would be enough. He could still be useful and that could be his purpose. 

Noticing the boys smile, she knew he would be okay and spoke again “Well anyway, I'm sure he won't refuse so your best bet is probably just to ask him outright."

The teen smiled at Serena as he nodded, the hint of excitement in his eyes unmistakable. Now they just had to wait.

\---

Gon was furiously moving around the kitchen as he prepared dinner, donning his favorite apron that he had packed for just such an occasion. Killua and Hisoka had already landed and were taking a cab to the apartment, and he wanted everything ready for them when they got here. He couldn’t wait to see the looks on their faces when he presented them with a perfectly cooked dinner. 

Gon had managed to keep busy in the afternoon after his chat with Sirena. She had allowed him to work out at the apartment gym alone while she rested and he had spent 3 hours down in the luxury gym until he was covered in sweat and his muscles were burning. After another shower he had convinced Sirena to take him to the grocery store so he could get everything he needed for the grand dinner he had planned. Gon would have preferred if he could go alone, since Sirena was still not in the best shape, but she had shot down that suggestion quickly. She seemed to do okay during the outing, but Gon knew it was still taxing by the way her dull eyes would blankly look around and her legs would sometimes tremble as if they were threatening to buckle at any second. They made it back to the apartment without complications though, and Gon had started cooking right away while Sirena went to rest and get ready for dinner. 

Gon was just setting the table when there was a knock on the door. Gon practically tripped over his own feet as he sprinted over and flung the door open.

“Killua!” Gon happily cried out as he launched himself into his friends’ arms. 

He nearly knocked Killua over from the force of his hug, and Killua quickly scolded him “Baka! Be careful!” but his smile betrayed him. Killua had missed Gon too, of course. 

“What a touching reunion~” Hisoka chuckled from behind Killua. 

Gon smiled even bigger and turned to Hisoka. “Welcome back!” Gon said cheerfully, bowing his head slightly to Hisoka. This seemed to surprise the red head, and he laughed. 

Gon didn’t waste any time though, and he quickly grabbed both of their arms and dragged them into the apartment. He was swarming around them, grabbing their bags and setting them down and handing them drinks while they were still standing in the entryway. He then pushed them towards the dining table and motioned for them to sit down.

Sirena was already sitting at the table, sipping on a glass of wine. Despite her earlier remarks about recovering by nighttime, she still looked exhausted, the grocery store excursion an unexpected wrench in her plan to rest. She had changed into black leggings and a black oversized sweater with sleeves so long they swallowed her hands, making her look much younger than she was. She had swept half of her hair into a bun and had put on delicate silver hoop earrings. 

Hisoka wasted no time in sitting himself right next to her, purposefully leaning close enough to invade her space. “Did you miss me~?” he crooned to the young woman. 

Before she could think better of her response, she smiled a menacingly soft smile at him and asked “Care for another glass of wine?” her words a veiled threat to repeat what had happened between them that first night together.

Hisoka didn’t miss a beat but his aura flexed out, half aroused and half with murderous intent, “I’ll have to pass for now, though you do look delicious enough to eat”

Gon cleared his throat, not wanting the night to turn sour before it even began. He sat down across from Hisoka and Killua sat next to him. 

“Welcome back you two! I made dinner to celebrate the official start of the mission, so dig in!” 

Killua raised his eyebrows at Gon “You made all this? Since when can you cook?”

Gon mischievously smiled at Killua, “It’s. A . Secret!” before sticking his tongue out at his best friend.

They ate dinner together and fell into a comfortable rhythm. It was a delicious spread of grilled fish with crispy blackened skin, rice that had been infused with the taste of coconut that was a sweet pairing with the spicy sauce that coated the fish. Gon had also made a slaw with juicy mangos and crispy cabbage that was coated with a lime juice. There was also an underlying heat there, a tangy spice that fizzled on Killua's tongue and made him hungry for more. Overall it was an amazing dinner, and Killua couldn't deny he was impressed.

While everyone was eating, Gon told Killua and Hisoka about all the things they had done in York New while they had been gone (minus seeing Sirena’s nen ability and planning to ask Hisoka to be his teacher) and then Killua told Gon about seeing his family and how Alluka had missed him. 

All was going well until Sirena slumped in her chair and nearly fell to the floor, the only thing saving her the fact that she had fallen in the direction Hisoka was sitting and the man managed to catch her before she fell face first into his lap. Gon waited for her to say something about being okay, but Hisoka slightly lifted her up and it was clear she had passed out.

Killua looked alarmed but Gon and Hisoka didn’t seem fazed, Hisoka even looked halfway amused. Gon got up and was about to pick Sirena up and take her to bed but Hisoka beat him to it, wrapping his large arms around her and standing with her in one swift motion. 

“I’ll carry her to bed, Gon~ Just point me to her room.” 

Gon was apprehensive about letting Hisoka take her, but knew he couldn’t defend against the man if he really put up a fight about it and he still needed to ask him to be his teacher. Gon pointed to the room Sirena was staying in and Hisoka walked towards it without saying anything else. 

Gon sighed heavily and Killua narrowed his eyes at the door Hisoka and Sirena had just gone through. “Gon, what was that all about? What’s wrong with her?”

Gon shook his head and pointed to the door that led to the terrace and Killua followed him quietly out. The two teens leaned against the railing looking down at the city below for a long minute before Gon spoke. 

“We were right to be weary about her, Killua. Her nen abilities are dangerous,” Gon muttered, trying to speak quietly enough that if Hisoka happened to be listening he wouldn’t be able to hear anything. Gon then told Killua everything that had happened while he was alone with Sirena, and the white haired assassin went wide eyed in shock when Gon told him about the ritual. 

“She’s definitely trouble, but at least she’s on our side for now” was the first thing Killua said because it was his first honest thought about what Gon was telling him. He would have to process this for a while, he couldn’t understand how someone could derive their powers from human sacrifices, he had never heard of such a thing. 

Gon spoke again, “Apparently it leaves her really weak, though. She nearly passed out this morning and has been almost like a zombie all day. I'm honestly surprised she even lasted through dinner.”

Killua looked up at the moon as he replied, “She said she is stronger at night usually and weaker the day after a ritual? I wonder how long it really takes her to get her power back after doing that.”

Gon folded his arms across his chest, “I don’t know, Killua. But she’s in no shape to fight Hisoka right now, that’s for sure. I just hope he can wait until she’s back at full strength.”

Killua met Gon’s concerned amber eyes, “Don’t worry about that, Hisoka likes to fight powerful opponents. He won’t fight someone as strong as her if she isn’t at her best.”

“You’ve learned so much about me after our trip together Killua, I’m flattered~” the salacious voice of the magician cut through their conversation and surprised them both. 

“Don’t you have anything better to do besides annoy us?” Killua snapped, his patience with Hisoka having severely run down after spending the last three days with the troublesome man. 

“Mmm, ‘fraid not. Sirena is definitely passed out and like you said, I prefer my partners responsive~” 

“Whatever, come on Gon let’s go check out the building or something” Killua said as he turned to leave.

Gon didn’t move though. “Actually Killua, I have something I want to talk to Hisoka about if you don’t mind.”

Hisoka and Killua both raised an eyebrow at Gon’s request, but Killua recovered quickly and just nodded as he walked back inside.

“My my, what business do you have with me that you chose me over Killua~?” Hisoka practically hummed before he strolled over to stand closer to the railing near Gon. 

Gon turned those big amber eyes at Hisoka and the man was surprised to see that the teenager looked confused.  
  


“Huh? I thought that’s what you came out here for? I promised to talk to you if you protected Killua, and you held up your end of the deal so that’s what I was going to do.”

Hisoka tapped one long finger on his bottom lip as he thought back to before he had left. _Ah, I guess we did agree to something like that. Of course he remembers._

“I guess I forgot with all of the excitement on my trip with Killua~” truth be told, the magician rarely remembered promises people made him because they often never got to fulfill them before he killed them. Another exception Gon fit into from his usual victims. He smiled devilishly at the thought, _but_ _soon enough we’ll fix that~_

Gon tilted his head at the man as he spoke again, “Well, what did you want to talk about?”

The magician refocused his attention on the teen, “I was curious about what happened to you since I last saw you. It’s not everyday you see the light behind the sun blacked out~” he punctuated his sentence with a dreamy sigh, his expression unreadable to Gon.

Gon frowned. He didn’t like talking about what happened, but he had come to terms with it. “You were curious, but you’re not anymore?” the teen questioned. 

Yellow eyes peered over at Gon as a sly smile formed on his lips. “Killua and I did have a very interesting conversation on the trip to his home. He told me about you losing your nen. Truly a pity, I was so hoping our meeting would allow for a fight~”

Hisoka had expected the blackness to return to the teens’ eyes at the taunt, but surprisingly he didn’t seem affected. 

“I actually wanted to talk to you about that,” Gon said, his voice much more solid than it had been since talking with Hisoka. 

“Oh? Surely you can’t mean to fight me without nen? Though you have always been impressive I wouldn’t hold my punches you know, and as our charming Killua said I really do prefer my opponents at least be somewhat of a challenge~” 

Gon flashed his signature sheepish smile, “You’re right, I can’t beat you as I am right now…” 

Yellow eyes narrowed on the teen, he didn’t miss that Gon said _right now_ instead of _not ever._ Hisoka smirked, of course the boy with prodigious talent wouldn’t even see not having nen as a permanent block to his skill. 

“But, I would like you to teach me to be a better fighter,” Gon declared, shoulders squared and chin turned up, every bit the picture of confidence. 

For once, the magician had no smart retort to fire back, could only stare at the teen in front of him with a blank expression.

Hisoka was rarely surprised anymore. People followed a pattern of behavior, and once you figured them out they became extremely easy to read. Hisoka had only met a few people that were exceptions to that rule, and number one on that list was the boy in front of him asking the man who had sworn to kill him _to be his teacher._

The red haired man suddenly chuckled, a genuine laugh that bubbled up from deep in his stomach. Yes, this was why he had spared Gon all those years ago and continued to be interested in him to this day. This was what made Gon so dangerous and thrilling, the way he could push aside morality for things that impressed him, the way he could reach out to anyone no matter if they were a saint or murderer and even thank them for helping him. He had heard the term ‘kindred spirits’ before, but had never met anyone he felt remotely connected to in that way. No one that is until that fated day Gon had struck him with his fishing lure and cemented history.

_You never disappoint me, Gon~_

Hisoka took a deep breath as he came out of his laughing fit. He couldn’t think of anything more amusing than teaching the boy to be a better fighter and still being the one to extinguish those fiery amber eyes permanently. He would teach Gon during this mission and then once Chrollo was dealt with he could dedicate his full attention back towards the teen, help him restore his nen so he could reach the pinnacle he would long await for and finally fight Gon for real. Hisoka nearly climaxed at the mere thought.

But he didn’t want Gon to know how much he wanted this too, so of course he wouldn’t agree so easily. He resisted the urge to moan lewdly and forced his mind to say the words that would set his perfect plan into motion. 

“And what do I get out of teaching you? If we’re doing a give and take, I’ve been giving you quite a lot recently~” 

“What would you want? I’ll do whatever you ask, as long as it’s in my power and it doesn’t hurt anyone.” Gon could only imagine all of the potentially horrible things Hisoka could make him do, so he was careful to set those rules about what he would do in repayment. He wanted Hisoka as his teacher, but not at the expense of someone else.

“Hmmm, very well. I’ll think about what it is I want, but trust I won’t forget to come back and collect~” Hisoka said, his voice low and every bit as dangerous as his threat.

Gon nodded, weary about what that meant for him in the future. He didn't like to be in debt to Hisoka, but the man had done him many favors and if he needed time to think about what he wanted in return, Gon would allow that. The teen knew Hisoka was fickle by nature, the man had admitted it himself, so he just hoped Hisoka would lose interest in him eventually and forget about the favor. 

Gon was shaking his head at his wishful thinking when Hisoka spoke again:

“We’ll start first thing tomorrow, then. Don’t disappoint me, Gon~” 

A fiery excitement burned behind Gon’s eyes as he replied, “I won’t.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I've said before, this story is totally self indulgent for me and there is nothing I wanted more than a reason to say 'Hisoka-sensei'. Please forgive my sins. 
> 
> Also, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has left a comment or kudos or who has read my story. Your kind comments mean the world and remind me why I started writing this in first place :)


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